DESIGN

A well-planned booster and lift station system plays a key role in supporting the Stringfield at Granite Mountain project, a high-end residential community near Prescott, Arizona. The area is seeing expanding demand for housing, while presented with unique challenges such as steep elevation changes, increasing water demand, and strict fire protection needs. To overcome these challenges and provide the growing community with water, Romtec Utilities designed a coordinated system that could deliver steady water pressure and reliable fire flow across the site.

With support from Romtec Utilities, the system was carefully developed to meet both performance goals and long-term maintenance needs. As the project transitioned from a public system to a privately owned water district, the design was refined to keep operations simple while still meeting high standards for safety and reliability.

Prescott, Arizona, is known for its beautiful mountain views, but that terrain can make water system design difficult. As more homes are built in higher elevations, water must travel further and climb steeper slopes. This creates challenges for maintaining steady water pressure and ensuring enough supply for fire protection.

The Stringfield at Granite Mountain site sits above much of the surrounding area, creating extreme elevation challenges for water delivery. Because of this, a basic water system using gravity alone would not work. Instead, a booster pump station and lift station system was needed to move water uphill and keep pressure consistent throughout the development.

This approach makes sure that residents have dependable water for daily use while also meeting fire safety requirements.

The facility was designed to serve a private residential neighborhood with two main goals: provide daily water service and provide fire flow during emergencies.

To achieve this, the system combines lift station and booster pump station into one integrated facility. The lift station moves water from a lower elevation, while the booster station increases pressure so water can reach homes at higher elevations.

Because the system will be owned and operated privately, the design focused on long-term ease of use. This includes simple controls, efficient equipment layout, and features that reduce maintenance needs over time. The result is a system that performs at a high level but remains manageable for private operators.

Romtec Utilities was brought into the project by Hennessy Mechanical to support the lift station portion of the project. As the project evolved, Romtec Utilities expanded its role to include the booster pump station, working collaboratively with the engineering team to refine the system and meet both regulatory and operational goals.

Key system features were:
– Dual booster pump skids serving separate transmission and domestic pressure zones
– Extremely high head conditions, requiring advanced pump selection and control strategies
– Two pressure mains and two booster systems integrated into one facility
– Mission SCADA system, provided by Romtec Utilities at the request of the private maintenance company
– Design optimized for long-term private ownership and reduced operational complexity.

This highly engineered solution delivers reliable domestic water supply and fire flow while accommodating the site’s steep elevation changes and limited available footprint.

Building design and layout were critical due to space constraints and space conditions. Romtec Utilities’ sister company, Romtec Inc., provided the design and supply of two site structures, including:
– One standard 2-post structure
– One custom booster station building

The booster station site presented challenges due to a restricted footprint – approximately 40 feet wide and 15 feet deep – requiring careful layout coordination and equipment integration. The structures were delivered as a direct purchase through Romtec Utilities. The integrated design-build value Romtec brings to complex utility infrastructure projects is incredible.

The system was originally designed to meet City of Prescott public water system requirements. During the review process, city officials expressed concerns with the proposed booster pump strategy and recommended an elevated storage tank at the top of the mountain to simplify system operations.

However, the developer chose not to pursue this option for logistical, aesthetic, and financial reasons. Through negotiation, the city allowed the developer to establish a private water district, a model the developer successfully implemented on previous projects.

This change required the system to maintain public-level performance standards while accommodating private ownership, operations, and maintenance preferences.

Plan review comments were minimal and once the building package was complete, the customer requested delayed delivery, and Romtec Utilities accommodated by holding the structure package until the site was ready.

Romtec Utilities adjusted delivery timing based on site readiness, helping avoid delays during construction. Romtec Utilities took care of communication during the project management and construction management process, to keep the project organized, reduce the workload for all other parties involved, and making sure the communication was clear.

This project involved several teams working together to complete the system successfully. Throughout the project Romtec Utilities worked directly with SKG Consulting, Sunrise Engineering, and the developer to guide the system design through multiple design, ownership, and review transitions while keeping long-term operation in focus.

SKG Consulting was the civil engineer on the project, while Sunrise Engineering was the engineering consultant. The project owner is the Davis Group, who named the development Stringfield at Granite Mountain. Yavapai County reviewed the plans, and Connor Moody was the general contractor hired by the developer to install the booster and lift station.

Training, testing, and system setup were completed by Romtec Utilities to make sure everything worked correctly before the system went into operation.

The Stringfield at Granite Mountain project demonstrates how a well-planned booster and lift station system can support residential growth in challenging terrain near Prescott, Arizona. By embracing flexibility, coordination, and long-term planning, the project team delivered a reliable water system that meets performance needs today while remaining manageable for private ownership in the future.