Pump stations are facilities including pumps, pipes and other equipment that are used by the water companies to move water up and down hills and maybe to your faucet. A joint project which was initiated back in 2006 between the Portland Water District, the town and others brought the new Wards Hill Pump Station to Gorham last fall. Shortly thereafter, a ribbon cutting ceremony with several town officials in attendance was held at the site to celebrate the positive impact to the community.

“The pump station is a good thing for Gorham because it is going to boost water pressure in the village – it already has now that it’s online,” said Ephrem Paraschak, Gorham Town Manager.

The two million dollar project was under construction for 18 months and is part of a much larger improvement plan for both Gorham and Windham.

“This much needed station is pumping water to a large portion of Gorham residents who have experienced low pressure for years but now have increased water pressure from 20 lbs to 90 lbs,” said Gorham Fire Chief Robert Lefebvre.

It is also servicing many of the town’s fire hydrants and the increase in both pressure and volume resolved a known safety issue in Gorham.

“The Fire Department was forced to go to hydrants on side streets to fight a fire rather than an adjacent hydrant due to water volume and pressure issues,” said Lefebvre.

Paraschak added that the pump station “will also help Windham with redundancy in their water system,” alluding to the bigger picture.

Next steps for this project include connecting Windham and Gorham’s water distribution system as a single pressure zone thus allowing the retirement of Windham’s Prides Corner station. This will include retiring antiquated systems and crumbling pipes and thereby improving both the quality of service and safety for residents.