Public Meeting Held on Proposed Well House Project at Wallin Park

The City of Hastings hosted a public meeting on Thursday, July 16, 2026, to discuss the proposed Well House No. 9 project and gather feedback from residents about the proposed location in Wallin Park.

During the meeting, City staff explained the need for an additional municipal well to meet the community's growing water demand and maintain a reliable water system.

Why a New Well is Needed

As Hastings continues to grow, the City's water system is approaching what is known as its firm capacity. Firm capacity ensures that if one municipal well is temporarily out of service due to maintenance or an emergency, other wells can supply enough water to meet community demand. This redundancy is an important part of maintaining a dependable public water system.

Each of the City’s wells is designed to produce approximately 1,200 gallons of water per minute, making careful site selection essential to ensure the aquifer can support the necessary production while limiting exposure to contamination.

How the Site Was Selected

City staff shared the history of the project, which dates back to 2011 when the City evaluated several potential locations for a new municipal well. The evaluation included:

• Geological investigations
• Test well drilling
• Aquifer capacity testing

After evaluating locations, the study determined that Wallin Park was the most suitable site.

The proposed location was placed on the eastern side of the park to maximize the distance from the fault line located along the park's western edge. The location also allows for a direct connection to the existing trunk water main along Northridge Drive. The need and location of the next City well is documented in the guiding document for the water system: Chapter 12 of the 2040 Comprehensive Plan (Water Supply) adopted by City Council in 2020.

Community Feedback

Residents shared concerns about locating a well house within a park setting, particularly taking up recreation space, potential impacts on views within the park, and not fitting the character of the neighborhood.

In response, City staff discussed several options that will be further evaluated, including:

• Designing a well house that also serves as a park amenity by incorporating features such as overhead shade and picnic seating.
• Creating a building option that closely matches the appearance of the existing park pavilion to better blend with the surrounding park facilities.
• Exploring whether the well house can be relocated farther into the park (behind more landscaping) while remaining within the acceptable distance of the test well and maintaining the necessary underground features.
• Evaluating the feasibility of selecting an entirely different site, including reviewing the costs, project schedule impacts, and engineering considerations associated with an alternate location.

City staff committed to developing updated concepts and renderings that reflect the feedback received during the meeting.

Next Steps

Over the next one to two months, City staff will continue studying the options discussed during the meeting and gather additional information on potential design modifications, site adjustments, and an alternative location.

Once this work is complete, the City will host another public meeting to share its findings, present updated concepts, and receive additional feedback from residents.

Following that meeting, City staff will bring the information and public input to the Hastings City Council, which will consider the findings and provide direction on how to move forward with the project.