The final step was on the question of the applicability to the ground water and whether it adapted to the Kansas Constitution. The Kansas Supreme Court decision settled the question, allowing the State Water Resources Division "to appropriate any Kansas water use according to what will best serve the public interest," said an editorial September 16, 1962, in the Eagle. The editorial went on to claim that the ruling "brings to a conclusion 15 years of legal strife during which Wichita was forced to fight misguided attempts to block the city's needed water supply. From this time forward, there can not be any doubt about Wichita having an adequate supply of water. It will have the Cheney Reservoir to draw upon within a few months; but should this ever become inadequate or unusable for any reason, the city can draw further on the Equus Beds." The editorial ended, "In essence, the decision promises to bring stability into Kansas water law at last. Although the legal path has been long and rough, Wichita's persistence in fighting for its own life has resulted in nailing down the rights of all Kansans in this important field."

Although it was close, it wasn't quite over, as the decision was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. But on October 14, 1963, the court held that it did not have jurisdiction in the appeal from the Kansas Supreme Court ruling upholding the 1945 law. As a result, the state court's decision was upheld. The actual case involved a landowner who claimed the water under his land was a property right and vested prior to the 1945 law. The upheld decision gave the state the authority to appropriate that water. Other cases were still pending in the Kansas courts but the rulings basically meant that the city had finally won.

After being the catalyst for much of the actions taken in the water area, Howse resigned from his position as a special city representative in water matters on July 30, 1962. At an honorary luncheon given on his behalf, Howse presented Robert Hess, the director of the Water Department, with 23 bound volumes of papers collected on the water problem since 1955, along with three filing cabinets of information. A detailed chronology of the project had been compiled by Howse, which he turned over freely.

Howse had been the main force behind the city's water program since its beginning in 1954. He received no compensation during his entire stay with the city, other than renumeration for a portion of his expenses. Bishop Mark K. Carroll, who had served as vice-chairman on the early advisory committee under Howse, said to him, "You are the most persistent man I've ever known. It was your persistence that got the job done." (Eagle, 7/31/62). The resignation of Howse seemed to indicate that the fight was over; it had been won. It was the end of an era.

While the dam and the reservoir work continued, the city began work on its project to bring the water to Wichita in the latter part of 1963. Bids were received on December 6, 1963. The International Pipe and Ceramic Company of East Orange, New Jersey, was awarded the contract for the 22 miles of pipeline with its low bid of $3,745,964.33 for 11 1,046 feet of 60-inch pipe. Utility Contractors, Inc., of Wichita would install the pipe for $638,165.65. Construction of the pumping station went to Kansas Construction Company, Inc., of Lawrence, Kansas, with a bid of $1,494,500, and the pumping units would be provided by Fairbanks-Morse and Company of Kansas City, for $120,400. Estimates for the projects had been $7,466,739 but the combined bids totalled $5,999,028.98, nearly $1.5 million less. By that time the dam was 74 percent complete.

Work continued rapidly on the reservoir. On November 8, the dam was officially completed with the gates closed for filling the lake, two and a half months ahead of the scheduled date of January 20. During the same week, the 60-inch pipeline from Wichita to the reservoir was also completed, some seven months ahead of the June 11, 1965, deadline. Finally on May 29, 1965, a public dedication of the Cheney dam and reservoir was held. The dam was 86 feet high in the center with the lake 40 feet deep. When full, the reservoir had a surface of fourteen square miles.

A huge celebration was planned to culminate the years of preparation. Nearly 5,000 people heard Mayor William Tarrant, Commissioner Dominy, Representative Shriver, and Governor William Avery before watching a water show, a sky diving exhibition, and other festivities.

Tarrant spoke first on the significance of the project, "No single project in the history of Wichita ever involved so many people and so many dollars as the project we dedicate today." Tarrant went on to expound on the numerous benefits of the reservoir in providing "recreational facilities, a wildlife mecca for upland game and waterfowl, flood control, soil conservation and many other functions," and claimed the dedication was the last component of a complex water system, which a city vote had initiated nine years before. He said, "The realization of this water system is merely the turning of another page in Wichita's long and extraordinary history--a book already massive with achievement." (Eagle, 5/30/65).

Emphasizing the importance of water, Dominy made the official dedication, dedicating the dam and reservoir "to the future growth and recreational opportunities for the people. The assurance of an adequate water supply will open the door to new opportunities and enlarged horizons for all who seek the goals of a great society...This is true empire-building because water is a basic resource and its absence or insufficiency will clamp a ceiling on development in nearly any part of the west. There is