City staff expressed top support Monday for replacing the new central water tower at its same location off of Fountain Street north of Newton Avenue instead of building one at a new site.

Albert Lea Public Works Director Steven Jahnke presented ranked recommendations out of the potential locations for the new tower during the Albert Lea City Council work session.

Jahnke said the existing site would have the lowest parking impacts and many believe adds character and ambiance to the downtown. It would also be next to the site of the treatment system.

He said the system at the current site is a barrier for development there, and noted that if the land were to ever sell, it would cost the city an additional $1.5 million to $2 million to drill in a well and put in a plant at a new location.

The water tower itself is expected to cost about $2.97 million under the composite design, which is expected to be the most cost-effective, according to Assistant City Engineer Phil Wacholz. This design utilizes a steel tank and concrete base. The base would not have to be painted and would be the most efficient to maintain.

Coming in second in recommendations for the new tower location were the parking lot behind Jake’s Pizza off of Washington Avenue, the county parking lot across from the Freeborn County courthouse on Broadway and the northwest corner of the Blazing Star Landing.

Jahnke said building a water tower in the parking lot off of Washington Avenue would impact parking and would require parking to shift more to the North Broadway parking lot. It would be in a location that would be visible from afar when viewing the downtown and would be a short distance for a connection to the system.

The parking lot across from the courthouse would cause parking to shift to Pearl Street in angled parking, and the Blazing Star Landing site would have no impact on downtown parking and only a minor or negligible impact on the development of that property, he said.

Coming in third in ranking were the municipal lot between the Department of Human Services and the Eagles Club and the lot at the intersection of Main Street and Washington Avenue. Both of these choices would impact parking.

The locations to rank last in the recommendations were the North Broadway parking lot and Central Park.

Jahnke said the North Broadway lot is heavily used for special events and has become a centerpiece of many community events. Central Park, though not one of the heaviest utilized parks in the city, is a historic park and would be a harder sell to the community, he said.

The council did not identify their favorite locations, but Jahnke said he is hoping to nail down the council’s wishes in December.

The tower will get designed next year, he said. Depending on whether the tower is built at the same location or a different one will impact the timeline.

The council has previously discussed about whether it would be beneficial to place the tower at the same site, as it is valuable for development overlooking Fountain Lake.

In addition to the composite tower design, the council looked at options for a hydropillar design, similar in shape to the composite but all steel, and a spheroid design, which would provide a circular tank at the top. With whichever design is chosen, the tank portion would be painted to improve the appearance.

Look to the Tribune on Wednesday for more from the Albert Lea City Council meeting.