MONA -- The town board has voted 3-2 to remove a standpipe used by area ranchers to fill water tanks used in cattle and other farming operations.
The board has discussed the status of the town-owned structure for several years without resolution. The matter came to a head recently as the board discussed revisions to the fee system for the coming year. In the past, town residents were charged $35 annually and issued a key for access to the pipe. Non-residents paid $60 annually.Mayor Bryce Lynn told the board he was tired of the endless discussion involving the pipe and urged the board to propose a final resolution. Board member Darlene Fowkes responded with a motion to remove the pipe. She was joined by board members Glenda Buchanan and Rick Schnurr in approving the removal.
Board member Doran Kay said the action is likely to upset area ranchers since the town remains largely agriculture-oriented. Lynn said he agreed the decision was not the best solution.
Those favoring removal complained that the fees charged did not cover the cost of maintaining the standpipe and noted there was evidence that keys were being passed between several people, reducing the fees collected. They also expressed concern that the town has faced shortages in its culinary water supply in the past and those shortages were exacerbated by water from the standpipe being used to meet non-culinary needs such as watering cattle. Another problem they said, was the lack of metering and control over how the water was used. They noted a person with access to the pipe could fill a water tanker and then resell the water elsewhere without the town's knowledge or approval.