What's the Deal with the Tarp?

First, there was a small curtain. Now it's completely covered in a massive tarp. And throughout the entire process, it's been shrouded in secrecy.

So what exactly is going on with the water tower on Gleason Road? It's getting a makeover.

"It just didn't look as good as the other towers do," said Assistant Public Works Director Roger Glanzer. "It has a little bit older logo than the other ones, was cloudy because it was so oxidized and just wasn't shiny anymore."

The massive tower, which holds one million gallons of water, was drained in early May, allowing crews to paint both the interior and exterior.

The curtains and tarp are up largely to contain dust from the sandblasting process. Crews blast metal shot—small hunks of metal—at the paint, then pick it up at the end of the workday with massive magnets. Once that paint is cleared away, crews apply a primer coat, an intermediate layer and then a final layer of sealant. The city logo will go on last, Glanzer said.

The process has taken longer than expected, Glanzer said, because of rain and high humidity. Glanzer expects the process to be completed by early August, when the Gleason Road tower will have a similar color scheme as its and brethren.

Water towers suffer wear and tear from weather, the condition of the steel underneath the paint and the sun constantly beating down on the surface, Glanzer said. The Gleason Road tower was last painted in 1987, with some touch-up work performed in 1993. It's the last of the city's towers to get a new paint job, and crews likely won't have to do it all over again for at least another few decades.

"It seems like every time we paint a tower, the painting companies have come out with a little bit better product that lasts longer and stays shinier longer," Glanzer said.

Glanzer couldn't say how much paint goes into coating a tower, but said with three coats, he was safe estimating the total as "a lot." The entire process of draining, sandblasting and repainting this tower cost the city close to $450,000.

Edina's four water towers serve dual purposes, both storing potable water for the city and creating water pressure in Edina homes by elevating the liquid high enough that gravity takes care of the rest.