This Is What Trapper Creek People Did To Get A New Community Well

Country Journal Report 

HOW OTHERS DO IT 

The Trapper Creek Community Well 

Trapper Creek Had Water Problems. They Built A New Community Well, And Now Charge Local People Ten Cents A Gallon For Water  

From the County Journal: We learned about the Trapper Creek Well project while out on the Parks Highway over the past few years, so we contacted them. The Copper Valley is not alone in having water problems. Here's what Trapper Creek, north of Wasilla, is doing. 

Question & Answer With Amanda Fleming of Trapper Creek

September 25th, 2025 

What was your situation before?

Prior to the water point, community members relied on a well at the Community Center, a couple of local businesses for water access or from neighbors with personal wells. However, that was a significant strain to those businesses and neighbors to ensure public health and consistent access. People also frequented a spring approximately 60 miles round trip (many people still rely on this option today). Additionally, the well at the Community Center was not able to keep up with community demand and would run dry. Due to other complications, a site by the library was selected and a new well drilled.

How did you decide to make the well?

The well was a known need for community members. The complications of the Community Center well progressed plans to install a formal water point that would provide a reliable and safe option.

Where did you get the funding?

Initial funding and planning came from ADEC and the Village Safe Water Program (VSW) as our community is 500 residents or less. VSW assisted in the initial evaluation of options for our community - once this was completed, the community was granted $325,000 for development and construction of the facility. One of the main requirements was that the facility was owned by a non-profit (in our case, Trapper Creek Community Services).

How much did it cost?

We used all of the grant money. We also received grant money from the Mat-Su Borough which helped with operational start-up as there were lots of unknowns (ie. power, heating oil, operators/admin, lab tests).

What does it consist of? How do people pay/use it?

We have two dispensers that allow either credit card or cash/coin payments. We also have $5 vouchers that we distribute if there are pumping issues or as giveaway items during local events. Most people fill water jogs or larger totes but we also have frequent RV fill ups during summer months.

Is a borough involved? 

No, the Mat-Su Borough is not involved. Their only involvement was the donation of land for the water point location.

Any photo(s) of it in use? or being built? 

Below is a pic of the current facility - you can see the two fill boxes out front (these are at risk of freezing if people don't return the hoses so we have operators check on them once a day). There is a mechanical room area with a backup generator and Toyo heat. Water meters, backflow preventers, filters, etc. are all located in this building. We are looking at adding a storage shed for inventory of repair parts and grounds keeping tools.

Comments on how it’s going.

We have four people that are actively involved with the Water Point - two operators and two office/admin. We are required to pay these individuals, However, there is a lot of volunteer time as well. ADEC water quality requirements were quite extensive in the beginning but have reduced as we have established water quality history. We started out charging $0.25/gallon but dropped that to $0.10/gallon about a year after start-up. That price has been covering operational expenses and allowing us to set money aside for emergencies/repairs.

I would recommend reaching out to some of these people below for more information:

Matt Want - mattwant@gmail.com or (907) 378-1744 - design/operation of water points in Fairbanks (search The Watering Hole on FB)

VSW - dec.vswfunding@alaska.gov - https://dec.alaska.gov/water/village-safe-water/grant-application/

Young Ha - State Revolving Fund Program Manager - young.ha@alaska.gov or (907) 269-7544 - https://dec.alaska.gov/water/state-revolving-fund/ - SRF Loans (can be forgivable)