The Grand Rapids Press

Forest Hills Public Schools officials are moving forward with plans to install a water tower on the 115-acre site of the new middle/high school building to be built at Knapp Street and Pettis Avenue.

But those who live nearby complain that they weren't adequately informed of the plan, and call the 250,000-gallon tower a "hideous monstrosity." They are urging the district to look at other options.

After hearing from those opposed to the tower, district officials think there might be room to tweak the plan.

"We are now committed to do everything possible to make this site less intrusive to those concerned," wrote Superintendent J. Michael Washburn in a three-page letter dated Nov. 1 to those who live near the site at Egypt Creek, Grand Valley Estates and Treebrook home developments.

"We have instructed our engineers to move the location as far east as possible," Washburn added, "and to shorten the (115-foot) tower as low as they can go without sacrificing the necessary pressure for optimum fire protection."

But some say that's not enough, and that they have discussed the possibility of legal action to stop the project.

A Nov. 10 letter to the district and Ada Township that claimed to be from the homeowner's associations of the three home developments argued that engineering estimates they obtained indicated that a ground-level tank would be just as reliable and as economical as a tower.

If the district delays the project and looks into the ground-level system, the letter reads, "legal efforts can be restrained."

But Washburn said there is no room for negotiation.

"It really is a done deal," he said. "We've got contracts signed and ... we need to move forward."

The tower is a joint effort between the school district and the township. The district is paying $366,000 for construction of the tower. The township will pay $125,000, because officials say the water pressure and volume provided by the tower will benefit those who live in surrounding homes.

On Oct. 27, a petition signed by 88 residents who don't want the tower was given to Ada's Board of Trustees and the school district.

At Monday's township board meeting, residents questioned whether the district would install a water tower regardless of the township's participation. They also said they are worried that their property values will go down and their water rates will go up.

Washburn said the tower is the best option because of the added fire-fighting capacity of the tower's water pressure. He also said that a change to the plan would be expensive and could delay the opening of the school -- set for fall 2004.

Construction of the tower is expected to begin in late December or January.