The cost of water may be going up in American Fork -- and the city is seeking public comment on the matter.

After studying four alternatives, engineers have recommended the city move forward with a $39.5 million system that would bring irrigation water only to homes and businesses south of the freeway and major water users on the north side of the freeway.

Even though only some areas would have access to the water, all residents will see a rate increase, city officials have said.

Council members have yet to vote on how to pay for the system, but general obligation bonds have been discussed.

Whatever the design looks like, if the city builds a new system residents will be paying more for water, John Schiess of Horrocks Engineers told Council members.

Council members assigned Schiess to report back with an estimate of how much residents would pay for the $39.5 million system.

Residents today pay $10 a month as a base water rate including the first 6,000 gallons of culinary water, with a surcharge for additional water. Steve Parker, head of the water department, said there are very few residents who use only the base.

Horrocks had originally presented nine alternatives for the city to increase its water supply. The council selected four of them for further study. Of those four, engineers recommended the $39.5 million alternative.

The other alternatives included eschewing irrigation water for a full culinary system with wells and a treatment plant -- the same system used by existing homes -- at a cost of $49 million, or building a secondary irrigation system to serve the whole city at a cost of around $46.7 million, or a plan similar to the recommended $39.5 million plan that would bring full irrigation only to the area south of State Street for a price of $38.2 million.

Schiess said the first $15 million of the $39.5 million needed for the recommended plan would probably be financed over a three-year period.

"The rest would come as impact fees," he said, referring to charges which would be levied for new construction.

Another option for the financing is a possible grant from the Central Utah Project. The city was offered a $5 million grant from CUP several years ago, but council members voted to turn it down since it would have required that the city give back 1,000 acre feet -- nearly half -- of what it had contracted to purchase from the agency.

City officials have anticipated that a potential grant at this stage would be less than $5 million.

Schiess said the engineers anticipated it would take two years for construction of a main trunk line for the secondary system. The remainder would be built by development as it takes place south of the freeway.

"The options presented by Horrocks were very well thought out," said Mayor Heber Thompson. "We will be pleased to make a selection of a proposed final solution. We invite the public to a meeting May 4 at 4 p.m. at the library to present their views."

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page B1.