Back on the water

MOSES LAKE — Around the Columbia Basin, there are certain signs that summer is coming – crews start pumping water into local pools, “roadwork ahead” signs start popping up – and the fountain in Moses Lake has been a reliable sign of summer for decades. 

It’s also a sign that winter is coming when the fountain is pulled out of the lake.  

It wasn’t there in summer 2024, however. Despite regular maintenance, years in the lake had taken their toll. Doug Coutts, Moses Lake director of parks, recreation and cultural services, said that was understandable.  

“With any kind of equipment, you look at it and you (say), ‘Well, every piece of equipment has a life.’ It has multiple things that need to be fixed and repaired, but there was a lot of work to bring it back to where it needed to be,” Coutts said.  

The fountain belonged to the Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District, and fixing it was going to be an expensive job.  

“We talked to them about the idea of transferring ownership to the city, and the city would work on the repairs and try to get it back in the lake for this year. Then MLIRD is partnering with us on helping put it in the lake, get it plugged back in, and they are paying the power to keep it running for the summer,” Coutts said.  

It was, of course, still an expensive job; city officials estimated it would cost about $38,000 for all the necessary repairs, he said. The city received a grant from Grant County’s tourism committee for the job.  

“And then word got out,” Coutts said. 

The fountain is important in Moses Lake, and people wanted to help. 

“Word got out that we were doing this, and we had wonderful community organizations and businesses come to us, and say, ‘Hey, we’d be willing to help. We’d be willing to donate our time, or donate services or give you discounts,’ or whatever,” he said. 

State law puts some restrictions on what cities can and can’t accept, so city officials worked out an agreement with the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce. Volunteers donated time and materials to get the fountain back up and running.  

There was still one little problem – the fountain was old. Seth Miner, owner of Miner Services, and his crew volunteered their talents, and Coutts said they noticed the fountain had a lot of years on it.  

“As we’re talking about what we’re going to do, he looked at it and said, ‘We might be better off starting from scratch. Then we know what it is, and we know where we’re at,” Coutts said. 

Miner said the original structure looked a little different on close inspection. 

“It looks nice when you’re driving across the fill, but when you get up really close to it, it definitely shows its age,” Miner said.  

Over the years, the fountain may have had some encounters with boats and personal watercraft, and it had been in and out of the water for decades. The original fountain may have been leaking, although no one could quite figure out where.  

“We had (Columbia Basin Technical Skills Center) students come down and do some design work for us,” Coutts said. “The kids there plotted out and measured the graphics.” 

Skills center engineering students Kayden Edwards and Meadow Saenz said it was one of those projects that was handed off on the spur of the moment. A member of the city’s public works staff explained what was needed, and Edwards and Saenz set to work. 

“We wanted to make sure it was as close to the original one as possible, so we had to measure all of it, get a top view, make sure we got everything pretty much the same,” Saenz said. 

The fountain features a heron rising from the water, with the sun behind it. Edwards worked on the lettering and the heron, while Saenz was assigned the background. 

“We made a CAD file of it that we then sent over to the city,” Edwards said. “It wasn’t too bad. It was bit complicated to follow the guideline of the heron, but overall, it wasn’t hard.” 

There were some things the students had to consider; for one thing, the fountain would be on the lake all summer.  

“We also had to take into account they only wanted one attempt, so we had to make sure we were really precise with our measurements, and that our tolerances were perfect,” Edwards said. 

Miner said the design also required some tweaking, with the goal of making maintenance and assembly easier. Miner and his crew reoriented the new pump and built the frame, the box to house the pump and the lights. The graphics are attached to the box. 

“We got it together where if you have a forklift and two or three guys, you can put this whole thing together in an hour,” Miner said. 

Moses Lake Steel Supply donated materials, Coutts said, and Platt Electric Supply and Pro Electric and Controls provided the electrical work. City officials decided not to paint it, opting instead for a wraparound provided by Signs Now. Pro Rentals and Sales donated the use of equipment to get the fountain in the water. Coutts also credited city workers for their help. 

Moses Lake Mayor Dustin Swartz said during a dedication ceremony Friday that the project was a demonstration of the kind of talent available around town.  

“We have a lot of builders, makers, craftsmen, engineers and designers, and that all came together on this project,” Swartz said.  

    Crews from the Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District and the city check to see the new fountain is floating and properly anchored.
  

    Welders from Miner Services volunteered the metal fabrication for the new Moses Lake fountain.
  

    The crew from Miner Services shows off the mostly-completed fountain.
  

    The new Moses Lake Fountain is towed out to its anchorage on the lake.