December Mayor's Message
12/1/2025
Mayor’s Message
As we enter the holiday season—one of my favorite times of the year—it’s hard to believe December has arrived so quickly. I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving. I’m grateful for the recent snowfall and hopeful for another strong moisture year, though it always feels as though that first storm comes just a bit too early, catching me before my fall chores are quite finished.
Water Improvement Update
On December 10th, we mark one year since the beginning of our water crisis—affectionately known as “The Great Leak.” A great deal has transpired over the past year to evaluate, stabilize, and improve our water distribution system, and I’m pleased to share some important progress.
The Utah Drinking Water Board has officially approved $1,698,000 in funding for Huntsville’s water system upgrade. This package includes $510,000 in principal forgiveness, with the remaining $1,188,000 financed at 1.5% over 30 years.
As many of you remember, our Town faced a significant water outage in December 2024, when an elusive leak left residents without water for an extended period. That experience revealed that parts of our system were aging and failing much sooner than expected. Over the past year, we’ve taken important steps—including rebuilding our emergency fund and planning long-term infrastructure upgrades—to ensure we do not face a crisis like that again.
This new funding allows us to move forward with:
• Replacing a major section of the Town’s main water line
• Adding redundancies to prevent future outages
• Strengthening long-term water reliability and system safety
Work on redundancy improvements will begin immediately. Construction on the new main line is scheduled to begin in early spring 2026.
This is a major step forward for our community. Thank you for your support, patience, and engagement as we work to secure safe, dependable water for Huntsville’s future.
A special thank you goes to everyone who helped make this excellent financing package possible—especially our expert, volunteer, and resident water department manager, Ron Gault, whose dedication and knowledge have been instrumental throughout this process.
Happy Holidays! Thanks for being great neighbors and friends. On behalf of the town council, we would like to wish you and your families a Very Merry Christmas and A Happy and Prosperous New Year.
Sincerely,
Richard L. Sorensen
Mayor, Huntsville Town