Watertown Municipal Utilities officials said Monday that Jan. 17-21 cold snap set a record for its highest flow of natural gas going out to customers.
During WMU’s January board meeting, Director of Operations Bert Magstadt said the period of Jan. 17-21, when temperatures hit -20 on two consecutive nights, saw the largest throughput of natural gas in WMU records.
Although 20-below is cold, Magstadt noted that the previous high throughput was established in much colder temperatures in January 2019 when temps reach -30. He said larger structures build since 2019, such as Terex, new buildings at Lake Area Technical College and the condominiums at Stony Point on Lake Kampeska, are some of the reasons for the recent larger throughput.
He also said the throughput was only 42% of the WMU’s maximum flow from Northern Border Pipeline company. He said WMU handled the increased flow without any difficulties and did not need to buy higher-priced natural gas from other suppliers.
Adam Karst, director of administration, said WMU has seen overall 9% growth in combined gas, water and electricity customer usage over the past five years, although the increases were smaller in 2024. Water usage was down in 2024, likely due to the timely rains last summer and less lawn watering by residents. Karst also pointed out that WMU is the largest city-owned electrical provider in the state.
A sentimental moment occurred about halfway through the meeting when Karst commended employee Sheila Mennenga for 17 years at WMU. Mennenga, human resources and risk coordinator, was cited by Karst for her work ethic and compassion toward employees. She thanked Karst and the board members but then became too emotional to speak further.
The board approved bids from Core & Main of Sioux Falls for 351 new tapping saddles ($21,744.45) and 209 corp stops ($7,529.72), and bids from Northwest Pipe Fittings of Huron for two 6″x1.5″ trapping saddles ($200.30) and 87 16″x1″ tapping saddles ($11,229.82). The low bid for janitorial services was submitted by Commercial Cleaning Service of Watertown ($142,200).
Chris Clifton, executive director at the Watertown Development Company, spoke to the board about the importance off the connection between WMU and WDC. He noted a handful of manufacturers are ready to expand their businesses if the local workforce can be expanded.
“A lot of developers are having a hard time finding bricklayers, electricians and plumbers,” Clifton said, also pointing to issues such as lack of affordable single-family detached homes as well as the child care shortage.
“All of these are not single-bullet problems,” Clifton said. “They’re not going to take one solution. It’s going to take a whole lot of solutions. Our job is to connect those dots and make sure those things were happening.”
He closed by saying that without the partnership of WDC and WMU, Watertown would not be the city it is today.