SR 238 may get a 16-inch water main. Photo by Raquel Hendrickson

Tuesday evening the Maricopa City Council will examine the extension of a 16-inch water main down State Route 238 west of Maricopa.

In a three-way agreement, the water main will be extended one mile from its present location at Smith-Enke Road and SR 347 by Global Water Resources. Then the City of Maricopa will extend the line another three miles west along SR 238 with the goal of serving the new Apex Motor Club location. The cost of the line is estimated to be about $750,000 per mile, possibly more.

Global will also pay for the upsizing of the water main along the city’s three-mile extension from 12-inch to 16-inch pipe.

While the intention of the line is not just to serve Apex but the entire growing region, Apex will kick in $1 million toward the new water line.

“Global Water’s involvement is we have a water line improvement that we can make out in that vicinity,” said Ron Fleming, CEO of Global.

Fleming said extending their 16-inch trunk line will improve water pressures and services to residents and businesses already in the area. The line extension will connect in the Estrella Gin area, near the location of the new fire department. The City also has the Estrella Gin business park, that is a 50-plus-acre, city-owned parcel just west of the intersection of Edison Road and Roosevelt Avenue.

“You want to loop waterlines where ever you can,” Fleming said. “Better pressure, better flow, better water quality. We’re going to extend our line down 238 and into Estrella Gin. It provides better system capacity at the intersection of Estrella Gin Road and 238. From there we can better service any future development coming along 238. That includes Apex itself.”

Fleming said in the future any developer along 238 in the area can “grab ahold of our system there and extend it out for their needs.”

Global Water has invested about $40 million in Maricopa’s water system over the past three or four years, according to Fleming.

“We’re happy to do it. All projects that are necessary to provide Global service for our customers and keep up with the growth that Maricopa is experiencing. Apex is just the next great community project,” Fleming said.

One important factor in Maricopa’s growth is Global’s assured water supply, which is necessary before construction can even be considered, if the project needs water service.

“We are happy to work with Apex and the city to ultimately develop a utility solution that works and let that project move forward. This water line is a component of that,” Fleming said.

The water line agreement is on the consent agenda for Tuesday’s city council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall.