Overview and Background:
Much of Bristol’s water distribution system was installed in or around 1905 almost 120 years ago. Those parts of the water system have exceeded their life expectancy, resulting in extremely high water losses each year. This results in increased operational costs, expensive emergency repairs, service interruptions, reduction in fire flows, as well as an increased risk of contamination. The emergency repairs have the additional impact of leaving a patchwork of pavement along village streets.
The Town places safe and affordable drinking water as one of the highest priorities for our community. The Selectboard, in its capacity as the Water Commission, hired Green Mountain Engineering (GME) in 2021 to conduct a study of Bristol’s entire water distribution system. The study identified replacing the nearly 30,000 feet of 1905 waterline as a high priority. Needless to say, this is a very large and costly undertaking for a small community such as Bristol.
The Bristol Water Commission evaluated several approaches and ultimately decided to break the larger project into the following four distinct phases:
- Phase 1 – Pine Street
- Phase 2 – Bristol West (includes some or all of Munsill, Maple, Pleasant, Church, Elm, Taylor, West, Park, and School Streets)
- Phase 3 – Bristol East (includes some or all of Mountain, Fitch, East, North, Main Streets and Pumphouse Road)
- Phase 4 – Rockydale (includes a cross-country line from the water tower to East Street as well as a cross-country line from the water tower to Rockydale (east side of town).
Updates
| DATE | DESCRIPTION | DOCUMENTS | VIDEO |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 23, 2026 | Bristol West Water: Oct 26 Shut Off - North & Lawrence | Memo_2026-10-26 | |
| October 22, 2026 | Bristol West Water: Maple & West Boil Notice Remains On | Memo_2026-10-22 | |
| October 22, 2026 | Bristol West Water: Oct 22 Tie-In, West & Maple Traffic | Memo_2026-10-22 | |
| October 22, 2026 | Bristol West Water: Shut Off Oct 22 - Maple & Pleasant | Memo_2026-10-22 | |
| October 9, 2026 | Bristol West Water: Tie-In Oct 15, Pleasant & Maple Off | Memo_2026-10-15 | |
| September 4, 2026 | Bristol West Water: W Pleasant St Sept 8, Local Traffic | Memo_2026-09-08 | |
| August 13, 2026 | Maple Street: Water Work Moves South Toward West Street Next Week | Memo_2026-08-17 | |
| July 20, 2026 | Elm Street: Water Line Work Resumes This Week | Memo_2026-07-20 | |
| June 8, 2026 | Bristol West Water: Maple St Watermain Work, Local Only | Memo_2026-06-08 | |
| June 2, 2026 | Maple St June 3, Local Traffic Only | Memo_2026-06-02 | |
| May 29, 2026 | Taylor Avenue Work Continues June 1, Maple Street Next | Memo_2026-05-29 | |
| May 25, 2026 | Water System Construction on Elm Street | Memo_2026-05-25 | |
| May 6, 2026 | Bristol West Waterline Community Information Meeting | Summary | Video |
| September 23, 2024 | Selectboard Meeting | IV.3_Bristol_Water_Upgrade_District_Map_VTM_2024-09-18 IV.3 Bristol_West_Waterline_Replacement_Project_90%_Plans_VTM_2024-08 IV.3_Bristol_West_Opinion_of_Prob_Constr_Cost_VTM_2024-09-20 IV.3_Bristol_West_Opinion_of_Prob_Total_Project_Cost_VTM_2024-09-20 IV.3_E-mail_LEE_Re_Bristol_Water_Line_Soil_Borings_Plan_SMS#20245455_2024-09-18 IV.4_Bristol_West_Waterline_Replacement_Necessity_Resolution_2024-09-23_DRAFT IV.4_E-mails_Bond_Counsel_Re_Bristol_Bond_Vote_for_Nov. 5_deadlines_2024-09-20 IV.4_Bristol_West_Waterline_Replacement_Necessity_Resolution_2024-09-23_DRAFT_BPM_comments IV.5_Bristol_Special_Town_Meeting_Warning_2024-11-05_DRAFT | Video |
Contact Information
Greg Faust, Town Administrator
Town of Bristol
1 South Street
P.O. Box 249
Bristol, VT 05443
P: (802) 453-2410 Ext. 1
townadmin@bristolvt.org