Crowning basketball town USA
Key Highlights
- The project replaced an aging standpipe with a 150,000-gallon basketball-themed water tower, symbolizing Milan's rich sports history and community spirit.
- Advanced coatings from Sherwin-Williams, including zinc-rich primer and high-build acrylic polyurethane, were used to ensure long-term durability and resistance to environmental factors.
- Color selection was carefully refined to match the town's branding, with custom-tinted Fluorokem HS 100 for seams and logos, ensuring vibrant, lasting visuals.
At first glance, it looks like someone dropped a basketball from the clouds. But perched above Milan, Indiana’s skyline is more than playful design – it’s a precision-engineered structure, clad in high-performance coatings and rooted in local pride. The town’s new water tower tells a story more than 70 years in the making – and now, thanks to a custom coatings system, it’s built to last for decades to come.
Since the early 1960s, a standpipe stood at the site, quietly serving the town’s water system. But by the time refurbishment plans began, the structure was showing significant deterioration – its continued use would have required extensive repairs and recoating. In a community where basketball isn’t just a game, the decision to replace it came with an unusual design brief: build something structurally sound, visually iconic and unmistakably Milan.
In 1954, a high school team from a school of just 161 students shocked the state by defeating a powerhouse from a much larger town in a last-second stunner – an upset so improbable it inspired Hoosiers, the 1986 Gene Hackman film that still ranks among the most beloved sports movies of all time.
Milan’s legacy looms large for a town of fewer than 2,000. And nearly 40 years after Hoosiers premiered, its underdog message still resonates – proof that some stories, like well-built infrastructure, hold up.
The result: a 150,000-gallon elevated sphere rendered in gleaming orange with bold black seams and the town’s registered brand – Basketball Town USA – curved across the front (Figure 1).
Systemwide upgrade, story-driven design
Milan’s $5.2 million infrastructure project – funded through a combination of state loans, grants and local resources – addressed both form and function. In addition to the tower itself, the initiative replaced water mains, hydrants, valves and service lines throughout the system – boosting capacity from 300,000 to 350,000 gallons.
But the centerpiece was always going to be more than practical. In a town known around the world for its basketball heritage, Milan leaders saw an opportunity to turn essential infrastructure into a landmark – one that would serve its 750 utility customers while honoring the spirit that put the town on the map.
To bring that vision to life, Milan partnered with South Dakota’s Maguire for tank fabrication, erection and coating. The project engineer, Fleis and VandenBrink, brought in Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine for technical consultation with selection of coatings and field support. What emerged was a carefully coordinated play – equal parts civic identity, engineering precision and coatings chemistry.
Inside the paint – A coatings system built for the long game
From the tank’s core structure to its final gloss, the project’s partners worked closely together throughout the design and build process, certifying that each product met environmental and performance specifications.
Inside the tank, a two-coat system was designed for immersion service in potable water. Crews first applied Corothane I GalvaPac 1K, a zinc-rich primer from Sherwin-Williams that offered early-stage corrosion resistance and bonding strength. Over that went Sherplate 600, a high-solids epoxy lining certified under NSF/ANSI/CAN 61 and known for its chemical durability and resistance to microbial intrusion. To provide complete coverage, applicators stripe-coated seams and recessed areas before applying the full topcoat, with dry film thickness verified between 14 and 18 mils.
“The interior is where performance can’t be compromised,” said Gene Jones, Jr., CEO of Maguire. “The community relies on a high-performance coating to protect their potable water supply, and that is where Sherplate 600 shines. With proper prep and application, it becomes a long-term barrier – something the town won’t have to think about again for many years.”
On the exterior, GalvaPac primer formed the base for Acrolon 218 HS, a high-build acrylic polyurethane selected for film build, flexibility and weather resistance. The finish layer – Fluorokem HS 100 – served as the final defender, offering best-in-class protection against UV degradation, color loss and airborne contaminants.
Together, the coatings team executed a full-court system – layered for durability, tuned for impact and designed to keep the tank in top form for decades (Figure 2).
Getting the orange just right
Color selection was an essential aspect to the project. An initial selection of Safety Orange was eventually rejected for its lack of resemblance to a basketball. Working with Sherwin-Williams representatives, the town reviewed architectural palette options and ultimately selected Knockout Orange – a bold, warm shade fine-tuned using digital analysis of Hoosiers film stills.
To match the town’s exact branding, the same Fluorokem HS 100 formulation was tinted black for the basketball seams and Basketball Town USA logo lettering. Each was masked and sprayed for consistent gloss and opacity, using a two-coat application to provide color richness and long-term retention.
Field adjustments, smooth finish at the buzzer
Although much of the tank was fabricated and primed under shop conditions, final assembly and finishing required precision in the field. Crews erected the tank on site, blasted exposed welds and spot-primed all seams to match shop specs before applying the intermediate and finish coats. When the first orange coat dried with uneven sheen and film build, Sherwin-Williams field representatives returned to the jobsite to assess the issue and recommend a corrective approach.
A second full finish coat was applied – restoring uniform gloss and matching the town’s visual expectations.
“We take pride in giving every customer the best experience possible when fabricating, constructing, and painting their water tank,” said Jones. “This is a special project for the City of Milan, Indiana, and we wanted to ensure the final product lived up to the vision we helped them design in the planning stage.”
A sky-high statement
Completed in summer 2025 (Figure 3), the tank both echoes and reframes Milan’s basketball past. Where the Hoosiers story and an in-town museum dedicated to the 1954 team pay tribute to history, this tower pushes that legacy into the skyline. Bright, bold and built to last, it marks a new chapter for a town recognized for the “Milan Miracle,” and ready to be recognized for more.
“This is something new and different,” said Deb Shumate, president of the Milan Town Council. “It honors where we’ve been, but it also puts us on the map in a new way. It’s a landmark, but it’s also a launch point.”
Milan leaders hope the tank, along with streetscape upgrades and the museum’s growing popularity, draws more visitors and momentum – inviting basketball lovers, new businesses and longtime residents to see the town through fresh eyes.
Built with pride, engineered for performance and coated to stay vivid, the tower stands as both infrastructure and icon (Figure 4). Because in Basketball Town USA, the story isn’t stuck in the past – it’s still being written.
About the Author
Casey Holter
Casey Holter is a seasoned coatings professional with over 22 years of industry experience, including six years dedicated to Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine, specializing in Water Infrastructure. Currently serving as an Asset Protection Manager, Casey brings deep expertise from his prior roles in store operations and multi-segment support, where he spent 16 years supporting a wide range of customer needs. He is an AMPP Level 1 Certified Coatings Inspector.
Jared Morrison
Jared Morrison is a coatings professional with over 18 years of industry experience, including 10 years dedicated to Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine. Currently serving as an Industrial Coatings Representative in Southern Indiana and Northern Kentucky, he brings experience in coordinating with contractors all over the country specializing in ground storage and elevated water tank construction and rehabilitation. He is an AMPP Level 2 Certified Coatings Inspector.
Steven Roetter
Steven Roetter, P.E., is a Market Segment Manager for Water Infrastructure for Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine. He has been with the company for six years. Prior to that, he was a consulting engineer in the water and wastewater industry for more than 35 years. His current geographic area of responsibility is the Western region of the United States and Canada. He is a professional engineer registered in Indiana and New York, an AMPP Protective Coating Specialist, an AMPP Level 2 Certified Coatings Inspector and a Past President of SSPC: The Society for Protective Coatings.