DAPHNE, Ala. (WKRG) — It’s the first new well in the Jubilee City since 2017.

“Now that it’s in production, it’s adding about half a million gallons of extra capacity a day to our water system,” Scott Polk, with Daphne Utilities, said. 

That addition is something Daphne will rely on if needed going forward as the demand on the water system increases. 

“That will actually allow us to use our other wells less frequently, which will extend their life cycle,” Polk said. “Additionally, if we have planned or unplanned maintenance at those well sites, we’re able to take them down without having to worry about losing water. It gives us immediate redundancy in our water system.”

On Wednesday morning, Daphne Utilities cut the ribbon to the new well near County Road 13.

“It’s just another asset to the City of Daphne to have an additional well and to make sure that we’re meeting our citizens’ needs,” Daphne Mayor Robin LeJeune said.

Mayor LeJeune said the city’s population has reached 30,000 residents, and the growth isn’t slowing down. He said officials are constantly looking at ways to improve.

“We’re continuing to look at that and as you continue to grow and make sure that our infrastructure meets those needs,” LeJeune added.

In March of next year, an additional well will be added near city hall, giving the city access to roughly 8.5 million gallons of water a day. Daphne Utilities is already looking ahead at the growth, making a permanent connection last month to Fairhope’s water system. Each city is now able to send 500,000 gallons of water in either direction if one of the cities is struggling.

All of the recent work is part of long-term planning and Daphne Utilities is already preparing to add a 16th well within the next few years.

“Typically it takes 3-4 to develop a well, assuming you find land that has suitable water and you can get it to a treatment plant or treat it on site and enter into your distribution system,” Polk said.