Retired resevoir stands for 90 years
Throughout the past 90 years, the city of Frisco has transformed its landscape.
Few things have remained in the city for 90 years, though one recognizable structure has endured the passing of time.
The Old Water Tower at Seventh and Elm streets was built in 1924, and the building adjacent once served as City Hall. Until 1985, it was the city's only elevated storage tank, according to the Frisco Heritage Association.
Though it is no longer an active water tower, it still stands as a historical marker in downtown Frisco.
The tower was recently covered with tarp and wires for repainting. The $275,000 project is expected to be complete between October and December.
The water tower was formerly a metallic color with Frisco's logo on the side.
Resident Dayton Duncan, who has lived in Frisco for 85 years, said he remembers how Frisco's City Hall used to be located in the building beneath the tower.
"I still remember going in there, in that little building," he said. "You would have to go down there for vaccinations for your dog and everything else. Everything was down at City Hall."
Former Frisco Mayor Bob Warren, who was born in the city in 1921, said the city used to drain the tank and paint the inside of the tower.
"When they refilled it after the paint dried, the water would taste terrible," he said. "It would taste like paint for a week or so."
Warren was part of the City Council that decided to retire the tower sometime in the 1990s.
"When we retired it, the engineers said, 'Well, we just need to tear that thing down,'" he said. "George Purefoy—the city manager—and I said, 'Oh no, just stop right where we are. Let's just take it out of service and paint it and make it a historical landmark. So we saved the little tank from being torn down when it got to not being used for water."
Duncan said he is happy the city has restored the water tower over the years.
"That was the only water source we had for a long time until they built that well out there at [SH] 289 and Spur 33," he said.
