City Crews Cap Pipe to Old ASU Water Tank

A stream of water snaked from Jackson to Ave. N and down to Austin St. on Friday as city crews worked on a pipe at the old water tank on Van Buren St. at the Robert Massie Dorms.

The construction work is part of a months-long project to cut water to the tank. Last October, thousands of gallons flowed and pooled in the same areas around ASU and Ave. N when the city emptied the tank; Friday and next Monday they will be completing the closure by capping off the underground water lines.

“We put a cap on this 16-inch [pipe] here,” a city employee said, pointing to the pipe in a hole. “It used to feed the tank, and we’re getting rid of the tank and everything that feeds it.”

A second pipe that measures 18 inches will be capped off on Monday, the man said. People may expect to see water in the streets on that day as well, he said, and there’s no way of preventing the water loss. He didn’t have an estimate for the water released into the streets on Friday.

The two pipes fed back to the large tank and a pumping room, the man said. Due to the age and leaks in the tank, it will no longer be used, he said.

“This is older than this part of the college, so things just don’t last forever,” he said. “I guess it’s not worth fixing.”