‘Better late than never’

CITY HALL — City officials and community members gathered near the greens of Chevy Chase Country Club Thursday morning to celebrate the completion of the $30-million reservoir that lies beneath a portion of the golf course.

“Who would know we are literally sitting on top of a 14-million-gallon reservoir,” Mayor Ara Najarian said to the crowd gathered above the reservoir, which has been operational since last year.

The ceremony marked years of planning and work since city engineers determined that the reservoir, built in the 1920s, needed to be replaced because cracks in the concrete had significantly compromised the structure’s integrity.

The project encountered numerous roadblocks, including construction delays caused by unexpected groundwater and ongoing legal difficulties with the country club.

The ceremony came more than six months after an originally-scheduled dedication was postponed following a winter storm, which dealt a major setback in the city’s efforts to restore the golf course to playable condition by Dec. 31, 2009, as required by a $2.1-million settlement between the city and country club.

The city ultimately agreed to pay the country club an additional $400,000 to cover the remaining landscaping work, which the club agreed to oversee, under a second settlement agreement finalized in March.

“We had to delay a little bit, but better late than never, and here we are,” said Peter Kavounas, Glendale Water & Power assistant general manager.