Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Aug. 11 – Water tank recoat contract awarded

• Recoat contract awarded to Coblaco
• New online billing provider chosen
• Financial and operational reports

By James Howald

At its August meeting, the Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) board heard a summary of the bids to recoat a water storage tank from Richard Hood, a project manager with JVA Consulting Engineers Inc. His presentation was followed by a vote to award the contract. The board got a recommendation to move to a new online billing company from Office Manager Cory Lynch. Finally, the board heard financial and operational reports.

Recoat contract awarded to Coblaco

Hood told the board that the district’s 1-million-gallon steel water storage tank located between Jackboot Way and Caribou Way in south Woodmoor needs to be sandblasted and coated with Sherwin-Williams paint. Corroded joints will need to be rewelded, Hood said.

Hood explained that the schedule for the recoat is critical because it is tied to the construction of a new concrete water storage tank at the same location that will increase the district’s capacity to store water. The concrete tank, which is being built by Preload, must be complete and filled with water before the existing tank can be emptied and recoated. The recoating must be complete before the start of cold weather, Hood said.

Five bids were received. Coblaco submitted the lowest bid, at $336,000; Viking Painting LLC submitted the highest at $1.3 million. Hood recommended awarding the contract to Coblaco. The board voted unanimously to do so.

New online billing provider chosen

At previous meetings, Lynch discussed inaccuracies in bills calculated by Xpress Bill Pay, the district’s online billing provider, and the steps staff were taking to ensure customers receive correct bills. At the August meeting, Lynch recommended the district move to a new provider: Caselle. WWSD is already using Caselle for other services and the company has recently added online bill payment to its portfolio.

District Manager Jessie Shaffer said Caselle charges more for spot Automated Clearing House (ACH) payments than Xpress Bill Pay. ACH payments move money from one bank to another without a physical exchange of currency. He recommended that spot, or on-demand, ACH payments be dropped in favor of ACH payments only on the 20th of each month to keep costs low.

The board had no objections to the transition to Caselle, and Shaffer said he would review the issue with the board when implementation was 30 days away.

Financial and operational reports

In his financial report, board Treasurer Dana Franzen noted Accounts Receivable were high because he was reporting right after bills had been sent but before customers had time to pay their bills. Overall, the district was “on track budget-wise—where we should be,” he said.

The board voted unanimously to accept Franzen’s report.

In his manager’s report, Shaffer gave the board an update on the Loop water re-use project. He said the Loop’s consultants were in full swing on design issues such as the engineering for the advanced water treatment facility, the lift stations, and pipelines. A Request for Proposals to expand the capacity of the Calhan Reservoir would be published in the next few days, Shaffer said.

Negotiations to purchase the Sundance Pipeline from the Cherokee Metropolitan District were underway. Plans for lift stations, pipelines, water treatment and reservoir expansion were 30% complete, Shaffer said. The Loop is still being funded primarily by dollars from the American Recovery Plan Act, he said.

In response to a question from Director Tom Roddam, Shaffer said he expected marketing efforts to educate the public about the project to begin next year.

In his Operations report, Operations Superintendent Dan LaFontaine said the water level in Woodmoor Lake was higher than typical during the summer months and that would make returning the lake to full capacity easier. The Central Water Treatment Plant is currently running entirely on surface water and the Southern Water Treatment Plant is treating groundwater.

In her Engineering report, District Engineer Cydney Saelens told the board that she had sent out the completion certificate for the transmission line for Well 22 that morning. The drilling for Well 12R was complete, the soundwalls were down, and site restoration was underway, Saelens said. She expected Well 12R to be online by the end of the year.

Saddle replacement would require road closures on Sunlight Way and Lions Head Drive, she said, noting the customers on those streets were notified with doorhangers.

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The next meeting is on Sept. 8 at 1 p.m. Meetings are usually held on the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. at the district office at 1845 Woodmoor Drive. Please see www.woodmoorwater.com or call 719-488-2525 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District articles

• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Jan. 12 – Board hires new attorney (2/4/2026)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Dec. 15 – 2026 budget adopted and rates set (12/31/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Nov. 17 – Rate increases for 2026 discussed (12/4/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Oct. 13 – Schedule set for 2026 budget (10/30/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Sept. 8 – Board plans for Accessory Dwelling Units (10/2/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, July 14 – 2025 budget gets midyear tune up (8/1/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, June 9 – 2024 audit finds “clean” finances (7/3/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, April 28, May 6 and 12 – Board awards well drilling contract, elects officers (6/7/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, April 14 – Board moves accounts to Integrity Bank and Trust (5/3/2025)
• Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, March 10 – Board authorizes easement agreement for Well 12R (4/5/2025)