Following the commission's meeting, the Eagle stated the prospect for soft water was more favorable than at any other time and commended the cooperation of the Water Company, the city officials and the Chamber of Commerce.

The updated report by the company was presented to Mayor Charles L. Lawrence and the City Commission on August 19. Two plans were analyzed. The first called for obtaining water from the Equus Beds north of the city for a total cost of $1,558,900, with an annual additional cost of $235,664. The second involved the plan voted on in 1925, taking the water from the Little Arkansas River above Sullivan's dam and treating it with existing wells augmenting the supply to keep the river flowing, costing $1,348,900 initially and $248,065 annually.

With the facts presented, the City Commission began an intense look into the alternatives. On October 10, City Manager Bert C. Wells reported on a pollution survey of the Little Arkansas River between Wichita and Halstead, one of the principal causes of the defeat in 1925. He concluded that no pollution was found which would hinder the city from using water from the Little Arkansas as a soft water supply. The Chamber of Commerce aided the investigations as Wells prepared a full report.

When the Engineers Club of Wichita discussed the alternatives that same night, it found little support for damming the Little Arkansas River. However, it did vote unanimously in favor of a soft water supply for the city. The Equus Beds was brought up as one option, although it was questioned whether an adequate supply was available near the surface. The issue of bringing water from the Ninnescah River was also raised, but the cost of four to five million dollars limited that prospect. The club endorsed the Equus Beds plan, assuming that an adequate supply could be guaranteed, with $10,000 estimated for testing, and one million dollars for the project itself.

By the end of October, Wells had collected all of the available information on the soft water subject, with the help of the City Commission, Kansas State Sanitary Engineer Earnest Boyce, State Geologist Moore, and others. On the 27th, the Beacon reported Well’s findings that a soft water supply sufficient to meet the needs of the city for 1,284 years was stored in the Equus Beds between Wichita and McPherson, and that the annual rainfall alone was enough for 140 years. A formal report was presented to the commission soon after.

According to the newspapers, support for a new supply was beginning to grow. "Wichita's desire for a supply of soft water is said to be more general than ever before," the Beacon proclaimed on October 27. The Beacon also stated that a recent poll on the soft water question showed that four out of five persons supported soft water and a city-owned water plant. That, of course, remained to be seen.

Wells initially reported with City Engineer P.L. Brockway to the commission on December 6, 1929, "We believe that the logical and most economical and best supply of water for Wichita is to be found in the so-called Equus Beds and in the drainage area of the Little Arkansas River. The Equus Beds extend from Wichita north and northwest with a known area of 900 square miles. The Little Arkansas River has a drainage area of 1,460 miles, with a minimum flow of nine million gallons per day. The quality of water in the Little Arkansas River and in the Equus Beds is, in general, quite similar. Both waters are practically free of salt and permanent hardness." (Eagle, 3/13/30). The formal report waited for the next month.

Wells presented the report, dated January 27, to the commission on February 3, 1930. After describing the alternatives, and claiming the major objection to the Sullivan dam plan was the pollution of the Little Arkansas River, he concluded that the commissioners should "appoint a committee of 25 citizens to hear a full discussion of plans and methods, then recommend to the City Commission the plan to be submitted for a public referendum." (City Manager's File).

Because of the community-wide stake in the water situation, and the need for public support if action was to be taken, a 25-member Citizen Soft Water Committee was appointed by the City Commission to study the issue and select a proposition for soft water to submit to the voters. It met for the first time on February 17, 1930, with Sylvester A. Long, president of the Chamber of Commerce, elected president. Wells presented to the committee all of the propositions which had been suggested by the City Commission, the Chamber of Commerce and the Water Company, for review. Charles Lawrence, the mayor, declared the soft water question as one of the most vital before the city at that time. No action, other than organization, was taken at the first meeting, but Moore and Boyce were invited to the next meeting.

The committee met again on February 25, hearing a variety of conflicting suggestions about the water supply. Moore, the state geologist, spoke on his 1925 soft water survey of Wichita. While in his original survey he had leaned toward the Little Arkansas, he now endorsed the Equus Beds north of the city, claiming it was a nearly inexhaustible supply. In order to avoid drawing in the salt water of the Big Arkansas, he claimed wells located about two miles north of Valley Center could supply the city.

Moore also stated that surface supplies were available from Sullivan's dam or a reservoir to the northeast of the city. According to his analysis, the Little Arkansas River could provide an ample supply if supplemented by wells during the dry season. The Ninnescah River was not seen as a good prospect by the geologist: there was no guarantee of an adequate supply, water would have to be pumped uphill to Wichita, and it could be spoiled by salt from streams near Hutchinson.

After hearing Moore's proposal, John Kirkwood favored the Sullivan plan. He contended that while the Wichita Water Company had submitted a definite proposal on its cost, there was no estimate for the Valley Center plan, and added that Valley Center water would have to be softened just as the Little Arkansas supply. The committee needed to review the several alternatives before a decision was made. After additional research and evaluation, the Citizens Committee of 25 presented a resolution to the City Commission on March 12, 1930, advocating that the city obtain a soft water supply from the Equus Beds north of the city. The report was split into three sections, with the first agreeing with the December 6 city manager's report. One section recommended that the City Commission secure a supply of water from the Equus Beds north of Valley Center by pipeline to Waterworks Island. Another section concluded the recommendations by calling for equipment to soften, filter, and purify the water before delivery into the city's mains. The committee supported improving the quality of the water regardless of the source.

Sylvester A. Long, president of the committee and the chamber, spoke on the report, saying that the committee had considered other sources including the Ninnescah River, Cowskin Creek and the territory east and south of the city, but none offered a satisfactory supply of soft water for a reasonable cost. Even though the Equus Beds flowed under the city, the wells would have to be built north to avoid letting the underflow of the Big Arkansas River seep in. Long also felt that water treatment, necessitated by health and business reasons, could be implemented within a year.

Wells estimated that the total cost for the project, with a 42-inch line to the beds, wells, pumps, and treatment facilities, would be $1.5 million. On March 17, 1930, the City Commission instructed him to hire a firm of engineers to investigate the soft water supply. However, after he had