Photo by Phoenix Water Services

“It’s a curious story that’s kind of been lost,” Kupel says. “It happened so long ago that people don’t realize that it helped form what we have today.”

And what we have today is a sprawling water system that spans a whopping 540 square miles, with about 7,000 miles of water mains. Roughly half of the pipes have been replaced since 1978, officials say.

About 95 percent of the water supply comes from surface sources, including the Salt, Verde and Colorado rivers, and is delivered through Central Arizona Project and Salt River Project. Wells account for the remaining supply.

An estimated 1.5 million customers drink from water processed through six water treatment plants. The average resident uses roughly 170 gallons at home each day, according to city water officials. And there’s approximately .75 parts per million gallons of flouride in the water, just enough to help prevent tooth decay.

Brown says the basic task remains simple despite widespread technological advances made over the years.

“In the most simplistic sense, the goal is to take the water and get the dirt out of it,” he says. “If there’s crud in there, you have to remove it with a high degree of accuracy so it’s safe for everyone’s family to drink.”

Officials say Phoenix generally does a good job of providing the water infrastructure needed to quench the thirst of its ever-growing population. And that’s not just due to taxpayers footing the bill.

“Frankly, for the last 20 years, most of it has been built by developers and built to city specs,” says attorney Grady Gammage, a former president of Central Arizona Project who’s recognized as an expert on water issues. “As soon as the work is done, it all gets dedicated to the city.”

Gammage says the city still faces challenges as it tries to keep pace with a growing population and the problems that arise with a dense, urban environment. For example, he cites water pressure problems around 24th Street and Camelback Road.

“Phoenix has always been good at providing the basic water needs of the city and routing the infrastructure to extend service to the outlying areas,” he says. “But there are real challenges out there caused by this kind of growth.”

He also says the city needs to talk about what could be a vital issue in the future – using “gray water,” or water that has been used in homes for washing dishes, doing laundry or taking showers, among other things.

This could provide water for toilets and landscaping.

“We’re just beginning to talk about this,” Gammage says. “It’s something we’re going to have to address in a real sense sometime in the future.”

But for a glimpse of the past, one can visit the ninth floor at Phoenix City Hall, where a large piece of the Verde redwood water pipeline is on display, along with other vintage photos and equipment.