In the August 3rd Sonoran News, Mayor Les Peterson – who doubles as the Chairman of the Carefree Water Company – claimed he wanted to “clear up the orchestrated misinformation circulating about the final appearance of the water storage reservoir under discussion.”
Then he proceeded to spin like a top.
As the chairman of Carefree Citizens For Responsible Government, allow me to clear up the misconceptions contained in the Mayor’s piece. Unlike the Mayor, who wants you to take his word for it, what’s contained below comes directly from the testimony provided under oath by the engineer from Coe and Van Loo, the firm responsible for this project.
CLAIM: “The reservoir will be underground.”
FALSE: The water tank will take the form of a flat-topped, steep-sided “mini mesa” about 10 feet higher than the existing grade and approximately 70 feet in diameter. The water tank will be accompanied by an industrial facility, an 8-foot-tall shed measuring approximately 15 feet by 15 feet used to shelter electrical and chlorination equipment. There will also be a freestanding backup generator and a blower unit used to ventilate the tank, all above ground generating noise and fumes.
Finally, this equipment and the exposed portion of the tank will be surrounded by plainly visible security fencing at least 6 feet high.
CLAIM: The tank “will be covered over with 2’ feet minimum of native topsoil” and “native vegetation … will be placed above and around the reservoir.”
FALSE: The shallow soil on top of the tank will not support vegetation like the palo verde and saguaros there today.
CLAIM: “The reservoir will be 160 feet from the closest residence.”
FALSE: The base of the new “mesa” will be about 100 feet from nearby homes. It will also be less than 50 feet from Tom Darlington Drive and about 100 feet ahead of the Carefree town sign. The base also will be approximately 70 feet from the fairway of the 3rd hole of The Boulders south course. Won’t that be a sight for sore eyes?
CLAIM: “Access will only be from Tom Darlington Road.”
FALSE: An access road will be carved into the desert where no road exists today. This new road will have two entrances onto Tom Darlington Drive.
In sum, this 300,000-gallon tank and its accompanying infrastructure will not be underground. It will not be covered with native topsoil and revegetated with natural vegetation. Nor is it far from any existing residence.
We appreciate the opportunity to clarify the facts.
Maureen “Mo” Benedetto
Carefree Resident
