The Cottage Grove Plan Commission on July 9 recommended approval of a site plan submitted by the Village of Cottage Grove Water Utility to reconstruct Well Number 2 at 205 Donna Drive, replacing an aging, single-room 1970s facility with a modern three-room masonry building and an external natural-gas generator with a sound enclosure.

Nate Winauskan, the project manager, said the existing well (one of three serving the village) has been partly rehabilitated in the early 2000s but the above-ground facility is outdated and needs replacement to meet contemporary Department of Natural Resources expectations and to extend the well’s useful life. The new layout separates the main pump/electrical room from two chemical rooms so chlorine and fluoride storage are contained separately, and upgrades will include improved ventilation, floor coatings and consolidated mechanical systems.

The new building footprint is small (about 555 square feet) and designed to fit within existing setbacks on a narrow residential lot that backs to private yards. The plan calls for a natural-gas backup generator sited behind the building within a level-2 sound enclosure; project documents estimate the generator will measure roughly 72 decibels at seven meters, comparable to a household vacuum cleaner. Village staff noted weekly mid-day testing routines for generators and said the generator would only produce extended noise if it is operating during a service interruption event.

Staff also said the reconstructed facility will add landscape buffering that did not exist when the original building was constructed and that utility and permit reviews were complete. The Plan Commission voted to recommend approval (motion by Don, second by Jared). The commission’s approval includes the standard requirement that final construction documents and specifications meet applicable DNR and village standards.

The project is part of the village’s longer-term utility planning to maintain local water supply assets; staff told commissioners rehabilitating the well is more cost-effective than drilling a new well at this time while the community grows.