In 2012, the prior owner of Payson Water Company testified that “the Mesa del Caballo water system does not have sufficient water supplies during the high demand months of May through October.” At the time, their stop-gap approach was trucking in water and imposing “voluntary and mandatory water conservation measures, many of which are extreme.” They also testified that PWC operated seven groundwater wells; three typically had little or no production, and the remaining wells generally produced less than 20 gallons per minute (GPM).

Shortly after purchasing Payson Water Company, JW Water met with the Town of Payson to discuss joining the financing, construction, and use of the Cragin Pipeline—bringing water from the Cragin Reservoir on the Mogollon Rim to Payson. By participating and investing over $1.25 million in the project, JW Water secured access to a Salt River Project surface water supply.

Today, Payson Water Company owns and operates 16 wells, with the largest producing over 90 GPM, and last year the Cragin Pipeline supplied our system with more than 9.7 million gallons of water. We also installed five new storage tanks: two 15,000-gallon tanks in 2019, a 65,000-gallon tank in 2018, a 5,000-gallon tank in 2015, and a 210,000-gallon tank in 2018.

As with Payson Water Company, we’re committed to steady, transparent investment in the systems we operate so our customers have safe, reliable water and wastewater services.

How rates connect to investments

Regulated utilities recover the reasonable, prudently‑incurred cost of providing safe, reliable service. These costs include the expenditures necessary for phased infrastructure projects, day-to-day operations, and preventative maintenance.  Rate cases align rates with the actual cost to serve today and the projects needed for tomorrow. Visit your utility’s website to learn about its rates and potential rate cases.