By Diana Meakem | Echo
The Breuninger waterfall isn't working yet, but university officials hope to have it flowing in time for the Breuninger Hall dedication Oct 11.
The problem? Instead of flowing over the wall, the water's flowing under it. Ron Sutherland, vice president for business administration, drew a picture to explain what's happening. The horseshoe-shaped wall between the upper and lower ponds was "designed to take some water"-what Sutherland called a "flowable fill." Beneath the wall is a footer which secures it-and that footer has been compromised.
Steve Morley, dean of residence life and discipleship, explained that when the waterfall was being designed, engineers believed they could use only natural material because the clay on Taylor's property is so dense.
"It is one of those things you can't really test until there's water in it," Morley said.
Sutherland was there an hour after the waterfall started. When he saw the water flowing beneath the wall, he said, "That's not drips of water . . . that's water spurting."
Taylor immediately called the company who made the waterfall, and soon after, the waterfall was turned off and drained halfway.
"The company who put it in has to make this right," Sutherland said. "We're not paying another dime."
The company's solution is a multi-faceted plan. The first step is to inject some items to solidify the footing that supports the wall. If that fails, the company will build another supporting wall in front of the footing. Its third step, if needed, will be to install a pool liner to seal the area.
That first step is scheduled for next week, and the official in charge of the project believes he can have the waterfall flowing by Homecoming. Sutherland, who has overseen the administrative side of this project for the university, is cautiously optimistic that it will be fixed on time.
The Breuninger dedication will take place on site next Friday, Oct. 11, at 3:30 p.m. Morley said the university wanted to utilize the patio and indoor lobby for Breu's dedication, which will include members of the President's Cabinet and of Ruth Ann Breuninger's family.
The waterfall is connected to various water sources around campus and includes some sustainable features. According to Kevin Crosby, coordinator of stewardship and sustainability, "the water that usually flows through (the waterfall) comes from the stream that originates from the open-loop Euler geothermal cooling system."
When the Euler geothermal water isn't flowing, a pump pipes water from Taylor Lake to the top of the pond. This pump is connected to a "variable frequency drive" that conserves energy by running at "exactly the speed that is necessary to provide the desired amount of water," according to Crosby. The pump also channels water to other campus irrigation systems.
Although the waterfall isn't working yet, Morley says the rest of the landscaping surrounding Breuninger is virtually complete. Privacy fences will be erected around the hall director's apartment. Other than that, at this point the plants just need to grow, Morley said.
