By Brandi Makuski

The Town of Hull has announced a public hearing on the status of well water and water quality issues facing the township.

Town Chairman John Holdridge on Thursday said the town has secured the SPASH auditorium at 6:30 PM on August 6 to accommodate the high number of area residents expected to attend.

Town officials say about 40 residents with private wells have to date reported problems including no water or low water pressure, something they blame on a the newest high capacity well- municipal well #11- in the City of Stevens Point. City leaders have repeatedly denied any responsibility for the water shortages.

Holdridge said the town has hired an independent hydrologist to investigate, and while that report isn’t yet complete, the public hearing will include an update on the progress of the water study.

“It’s important to keep people up to date, and also to hear their points of view,” Holdridge said. “It’s a chance to address your government and seek redress, which is the whole point of democratic government. And that’s important because I think this could really change the way permits are granted for high-cap wells throughout the entire state. This well water issue isn’t just about the Town of Hull- this could have a negative effect on well-owners all over.”

But now town residents say they’ve been blindsided with a potential new high-capacity well inside the Hull town limits. About 60 residents have already signed a petition objecting to a new high-capacity well proposed just north of Jordan Road in the Town of Hull.

According to documents submitted to the Dept. of Natural Resources, Plover River Farms Alliance, Inc. submitted an application for a permit to drive a 70- foot agricultural well, with an expected to draw of 576,000 gallons of water daily between April and October, with a proposed maximum daily usage of 1.152 million gallons.

The application was submitted December 16 but has not yet been reviewed yet due to a backlog with the Dept. of Natural Resources, which has received 200 applications for high-capacity wells from across the state since November of 2013- with 14 of those applications from inside Portage County.

Holdridge said he estimates the well # investigation is “about a month away” from being completed, but added the new high-capacity well issue could be only beginning for area residents.

Other items on the public hearing agenda include possible action by the Hull Board of Supervisors on the proposed high- capacity well, and enforcement of a public nuisance ordinance on a residential property located at 527 Maple Bluff Road.

Residents unable to attend the meeting in person can submit comments via email to: [email protected]hull.wi.gov or by U.S. Mail to: 4550 Wojcik Memorial Drive, Stevens Point 54482, no later than August 7.