Water Tower

The new water tower at Hagerstown's West End Reservoir will have "Hagerstown's West End" written on it, a majority of City Council members agreed Tuesday. The mayor and council have debated what words will be painted on to the water tank since early October when they were asked to put the message, "Welcome to Hagerstown, Home of the West End Little League and Colt League," on the water tower. Mayor Robert E. Bruchey II Tuesday suggested painting "Hagerstown's West End" on the tank.

Water tower constructed in Pa. By DON AINES / Staff Writer, Chambersburg CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - As the occasional foursome of golfers hit their second shots a few yards away on a hole at the Rocky Spring Golf Course Tuesday, a five-man crew was raising a 135-foot water tower for the Cumberland Valley Business Park and Letterkenny Army Depot. continued Portable generators roared as two welders pieced together the tower shell with arc welders. The work of the Pitt-Des Moines Inc. crew is scheduled for completion by Nov. 17, according to Letterkenny Industrial Development Authority Facilities Manager Michael C. Whiteley.

The 330,000 gallon water tower is needed to ensure that the Centre at Hagerstown will not affect the water pressure of residents in that area. The developer of the Centre is paying for the construction of the tower, which the city will own and maintain once it is completed.

chambersburg@herald-mail.com CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - The Chambersburg Borough Council on Monday night ratified a three-part deal with the owner of a radio station to end the stalemate that has lasted more than two years on construction of a 2-million-gallon elevated water tank. The agreement with M. Belmont VerStandig Inc., the owner of WCBG-AM, calls for the borough to pay $590,000 for the 8.2-acre transmission tower site adjacent to the water tower site in the Chambers-5 Business Park.

Crews on Tuesday morning began to demolish the water tower at Johnson Controls, the former Frick Co. in Waynesboro, Pa.

The Frick Co. water tower in Waynesboro, Pa., torn down by new owner Johnson Controls, is shown last week near the end of its demolition.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - The dismantling of the old Frick Co. water tower began Tuesday morning. Sparks glowed from high above Waynesboro as the first pieces to be removed came off the tower's peak. The demolition process is expected to take a couple of weeks. "It's not a functioning tower. It has not been functioning for some time," company spokesman Darryll Fortune said. "It was costing too much to maintain. " Most of the steel structure will be recycled, although some pieces will be considered for saving in archives, according to Fortune.

Former Hagerstown Mayor William Breichner was one of two people who told the City Council on Tuesday that the design plans to replace the water tower on the city's West End are flawed. Breichner and David Shindle, a former engineer with the city's water department, told the council that plans to raise the elevation of a new water tank on the city's West End would cause water pressure to increase. Shindle passed out copies of his presentation, which included statistics and drafts of the West End reservoir, to each of the council's members.

WILLIAMSPORT -- At first glance, U.S. Cellular's proposal to the town of Williamsport sounds like a no-brainer, the town's attorney said. The company would pay Williamsport $1,750 per month to attach cellular antennas to the town's existing water tower and avoid having to build a cellular tower in town. But, if town officials are not careful, the agreement could make it hard to turn down similar requests from other cellular companies or, worse, land the town in the middle of an expensive legal battle as competitors attempt to move in, town attorney Edward Kuczynski said.

waynesboro@herald-mail.com WAYNESBORO, Pa. - State Sen. Terry Punt announced Thursday night that he has secured a $1.1 million grant so the Washington Township Municipal Authority can build a 1.5 million-gallon water storage tank. Punt, R-Franklin, made the announcement at a meeting of the Greater Waynesboro Area Vision 2015. More than 80 people attended the event at Waynesboro Country Club. "WTMA's water resources are running low," Punt said. "They need new wells.

The town of Shepherdstown is spending $4 million to increase the capacity, flow and pressure of its public water system by replacing two aging 500,000-gallon water tanks on W.Va. 45 about a mile from the corporate limits. The first one old tank was razed to make room for the first of two new 700,000-gallon tanks which is expected to go on line this spring, said Public Works Director Frank Welch. The remaining old tank will be razed to make room for the second new one schedule to be ready for service in September.

Williamsport's annual Christmas parade is Friday, beginning at 7 p.m. The parade starts at the water tower, goes down Conococheague St., then Potomac St. Santa will ride in the parade and lead onlookers to Byron Memorial Park for the annual lighting of the park celebration. Those participating in the parade, including classic cars, should be at the water tower at 6:30 p.m. for lineup. Breakfast with Santa A Christmas breakfast, sponsored by the Williamsport Volunteer Fire and EMS, will be served Saturday from 6 to 11 a.m. in the community building.

KEEDYSVILLE -- Keedysville officials are hoping a $2.8 million water system upgrade will start in early spring, said Assistant Mayor Barry Levey, who is chairman of the Water Board. The work will cause periodic disruptions in water service and affect traffic on Main Street, town officials said. An informational meeting to update residents on the project will be held Wednesday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, Town Administrator Amy Simmons said. The project involves a complete water main replacement, a new pumping station and a new water tower, Simmons said.

WILLIAMSPORT -- The Williamsport Christmas parade will be Friday, Dec. 4, at 7 p.m., said Teresa Cheppo, a clerk at Town Hall. There was some discussion among town officials about moving the parade to a Saturday to alleviate traffic concerns and because more people are expected to be in town on Saturday, but the parade will remain on Friday this year. The parade will go from near the water tower at Sunset Avenue and Conococheague Street, up Potomac Street to Byron Memorial Park.

Williamsport officials must be held accountable for rate hikes To the editor: If you are a resident of Williamsport, before you turn on your faucet or flush your toilet, you will soon owe Williamsport almost $80 every three months, and this does not include the additional fees for your use of water and the treatment of sewage. Future rate increases and high electric bills are on the horizon and it may soon be too expensive to live in Williamsport. It's no secret that every municipality across the U.S., Maryland and Washington County is in need of water and sewer infrastructure repairs - and Williamsport is at the top of this list.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development has informed Franklin County that its share of Community Development Block Grant funds will not be less than the $402,000 it received for 2008 and it could be much higher depending on what is in the federal stimulus package now before Congress. Any additional money, however, could come with additional strings that could tie the hands of the Board of County Commissioners. On Thursday, the board reviewed the applications for CDBG funding totaling $1.2 million, including a $750,000 request from Mercersburg, Pa., to replace water and sewer lines and the sidewalk on East California Street.

Sprint PCS cellular antennas are installed Tuesday on the water tower in the North End of the Borough of Waynesboro. "They are leasing antenna space off our tower," said S. Leiter Pryor, borough utilities director. Sprint joins AT&T Wireless and T-Mobile, which already have equipment on the tower.

WILLIAMSPORT -- At first glance, U.S. Cellular's proposal to the town of Williamsport sounds like a no-brainer, the town's attorney said. The company would pay Williamsport $1,750 per month to attach cellular antennas to the town's existing water tower and avoid having to build a cellular tower in town. But, if town officials are not careful, the agreement could make it hard to turn down similar requests from other cellular companies or, worse, land the town in the middle of an expensive legal battle as competitors attempt to move in, town attorney Edward Kuczynski said.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. -- The company looking to put Sprint PCS antennas on a Rouzerville, Pa., water tower has been asked to present more information to the Washington Township Supervisors. The supervisors hosted two hours worth of discussion on Monday concerning the plan from Shenandoah Personal Communications Co./Shentel, which has submitted a proposal regarding the existing water tower between Pa. 16 and Old Route 16 east of Capital Camps. Antennae would be placed 115 feet up the 120-foot water tower under a lease agreement in place with the Washington Township Municipal Authority.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - There is a right way and a wrong way to provide cellular coverage to Blue Ridge Summit, and on Monday the Washington Township Planning Commission recommended a proposal which, in its opinion, does cellular the way cellular "should be done. " The commission unanimously recommended approval of plans by Shenandoah Personal Communications Co./Shentel to place a cellular antenna 115 feet up an existing water tower between Pa. 16 and Old Route 16 east of Capital Camps in Rouzerville, Pa. Commissioner Randy Kuhn said larger cities have set a strong example of how to hide antennas in a community without building additional structures.