City Manager Recommends Curtailing
New Water Hook-ups
City Manager, David Hawker released a memo to City Council about water service in which he recommended that Council consider a policy that refuses any new service in the UGB outside the City. As justification for the recommendation he states that on Devils Lake,
“Over many years, including before Lincoln City was incorporated, this policy allowed about 700 homes to develop in the Devil’s Lake watershed without sewer service or any plan for it. Most of this development occured outside the City (though some of it has been annexed). The result is substantial pollution of the lake, and no provision to replace with sewer, no end in sight.”
He does not provide any proof or eleaborate in any way in support of his claim that the provision of water to homes on Devils Lake has substantially polluted the lake. He continues to discuss issues in providing water to Schooner Creek and Drift Creek areas.
Hawker closed the memo by stating that he is “not urging any immediate change, only to initiate a discussion. There are many issues, and
any policy change needs to examine them carefully.”
