Saturday, August 24, 2013

Water Line Project Set for October Completion

Completion of the 11 mile water line project is slated for the end of October. The project is now as far as Worth. Public Works Director Carl Staton has been on the site most of the time inspecting the work and making sure that it was done properly. Staton said that the city had inspected the pipes beforehand this time to ensure that they were properly manufactured. Councilman Bruce Downing said that Staton had caught problems that the inspector had not. According to the minutes, Downing requested the time schedule when the inspector is on site. They both said that the project had been going well and Staton said that the problems encountered were nothing that could not be fixed. He said that the new line would allow city crews to locate breaks and leaks much quicker than the old line. He reported that 19,170 feet of the new line had been completed as of Thursday.

Among other problems, the project had gotten into the old water line twice while putting in the new water line.

Randy Mendenhall of Snyder and Associates was at the meeting to present a change order for the project for a different type of boring than what was originally planned, at a cost of $8,645 out of the USDA contingency fund set up for that purpose.

The city received one bid for a retaining wall for the Nature Trail. No action was taken because council members thought the $6750 price tag was too high.

The bill for repairing the Water Tower was not as high as expected. Clerk Ayvonne Morin presented a bill from Liquid Engineering for epoxy coating repairs for $2,525.00.

Staton reported that city crews had been working on spraying for dust control, patching potholes, planting fire hydrants, blading streets, and fixing water leaks. He reported that one person had successfully completed his community service work assisting city crews with their labor. Staton also reported that glass on the backhoe needed replaced as it was broken during a waterline repair. The council voted to pay for the repairs at a cost of $942.00.

The Skating Rink will feature a new sign for the facility. The council voted to waive the permit fee for the sign.

The council discussed a resolution from the Wholesale Water Commission. Council members took no action. Council members and local officials said that there were other options out there, that the deal would have required purchasing water from the Commission, that it could be 15-25 years down the road before Grant City would benefit, that several entities had dropped out since last month, and that there were no numbers put together that had been presented to the city.

Fall cleanup for Grant City was scheduled for September 28th.

The Square will be blocked off at 5 this Saturday for the Grant City Sesquicentennial except for the east side of the Square.

The city euthanized four dogs last month. The vet clinic successfully found homes for two other dogs that would have been euthanized. Persons interested in adopting stray dogs can contact City Hall.

Staton reported that the Nature Trail Project was on hold under the Water Line project was completed.

The city is looking into purchasing some lights for the new Grant City sign that is going up in front of the Dollar General Store. The goal is to get the sign done before the Sesquicentennial.

The city went into closed session to discuss personnel matters. After they came out of closed session, they voted to hire a full-time general laborer.

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