Despite a lengthy discussion by Marthasville city officials, no agreement was reached during last Wednesday’s meeting on whether or not to allow residents to install underground irrigation systems. The issue was brought to city officials’ attention by Tim Flagg during his water and sewer report. Flagg, a contract city employee for water and sewer services, told the board that a resident inquired about an in-ground irrigation system on his property. “We’d be talking about providing this water for irrigation and we don’t have enough capacity to support this,” he said. Flagg said allowing residents to use in-ground irrigation systems will require the city to invest in another water well and tower at considerable cost. “The last discussion we had on this, the reason why we said ‘no’ was that there would be an extra cost for the whole community,” he said. “Another well and elevated tank would probably be in excess of $1 million.” Flagg presented city officials with graphs comparing residential water usage with and without irrigation systems. According to the graph, with an irrigation system the water well pumps are activated approximately 6.7 times per day during the summer months in order to maintain a balanced level. Residential water usage is estimated at 185,000 gallons per month. This is compared to not having an irrigation system in place during the winter months, in which water well pumps are activated approximately 1.6 times per day, with residential water usage estimated at 150,000 gallons per month. “With an irrigation system, that’s six times the energy cost and 10 times the water consumption,” Flagg said. He said those numbers support the fact that with an irrigation system the total amount of water used in each house is only one-tenth the amount of water put on lawns. More water usage essentially means more revenue for the city and Alderman Leo Tobben was concerned that the city was not maximizing that revenue. “If an irrigation system is six times the energy cost, how are we not making more money?” he asked Flagg. Flagg said the city currently only has water capacity for domestic use. “What we don’t have the capacity for is in-ground water systems and irrigation,” he said. “With an in-ground water system, we’re taking away from the capacity we have to irrigate. We’re depleting the system. “The water system belongs to the community,” Flagg added. “Not a few people.” Tobben called it alarming to hear that the city does not have enough water capacity for irrigation. “If it’s that bad that we can’t run a sprinkler system, we shouldn’t be using it for the fire department,” he said. “It’s a risk for the guys going in to fight structure fires (if there is not enough water).” All water towers, Flagg admitted would eventually need general repairs. Although Flagg noted that each of the city’s three wells eventually will need repairs, he said allowing residential in-ground irrigation systems could also put the city in a difficult position. He proposed using available resources before adding another water well and tower. “The biggest problem I have with irrigation systems is irresponsibility,” he said. “How many times do you see this? You’re driving down the road, it’s raining cats and dogs and somebody’s sprinkler system is running. “If we allow them (residents to have in-ground irrigation systems), it’s tough to go back,” Flagg added. “We’re not running out now, but if we go down this path, we’re digging ourselves a hole. Once you open that door, you’re asking for trouble.” He said an investment on another water well and tower may not be worth it for the city. “Other communities like St. Charles have been through this and it’s a burden on the community,” he said. “Is that really the direction the people in the community want to take? “Our debt compared to other municipalities is very low and that’s only money we borrowed from the bank to upgrade our lagoon,” Flagg said. Alderman John Graham agreed. “I think (Flagg) is right,” he said. “It could open up a big, big problem that we could get stuck in. We hired him because he’s an expert in his field. Tobben said he wanted to make the best decision to benefit citizens. “I want to see us be proactive for the city,” Tobben said. Further discussion on the issue between city officials is set for next month’s meeting.