Rossville Board welcomes new alderman Gary York

By: Carolyn G. Rhea,

Staff Writer

The Town of Rossville board met on Tuesday, August 12. Present were Mayor Judy Watters, Vice-Mayor Bobby Williams, and Aldermen Mike Swessel, Jeff Wooden, Sondra Harris, and Matt Fulcher.

Department Reports

Clerk Loretta Bell gave the financial report for July. The police department reported for July 344 traffic tickets, 268 citations, 75 warnings, 17 calls for service, one arrest, and two vehicle crashes. Fire Chief Edgar Babian reported for July 18 calls for service with 11 being medical and twi were fires.

Joseph Howell of Public Works reported for July they pumped 7,079,000 gallons of water and billed 6,329,825 gallons with a water loss of 10.6 percent. The gallons doubled this past month due to the amount of irrigation going on right now. He stated the town’s pre-treatment program that was operated with Kellogg’s was dormant when Kellogg’s left. Between Mayor Watters, city engineer Tim Verner, and city attorney Tom Minor, it has been put back into active status. It was expected to take 3 months but it was done in about two weeks.

Engineer Tim Verner said last month we had received bids on the Cotton Trail’s mislocated drainage pipe that were higher than expected. We have two options to make it less expensive by speaking to the low bidder. He suggested a change order to have the liner placed under the existing pipe and take bids on that. It really needs a specialty contractor. Verner said the board should award the project as it was bid to the low bidder, negotiate a deductive change order for the altered pipe, then come back after the pipe is re-installed and bid out separately on the liner. The motion was to award the contract and authorize the mayor to sign the change order not to exceed $27,000. It was approved.

New Business

The board approved a rezoning request on first reading for 1.44 acres in town for Browning Construction for a driveway to be added.

Well Construction

Verner stated the bids on the three new wells were high and we discussed with the contractor how to lessen this cost. He has a reduction in price by $710,242 by moving the final electric hookup for the wells from the well project to the water project. We don’t want two services. This is just deferring when the town spends this money. Also, the state requires any new well be tested and you can have a test well. Knowing the water around this area and four  wells the town currently has, we know we have good water. The savings of not having a test well is $200,000.

   Verner said we can submit this modification through our grant writer and since we’re not spending more money, hopefully the state will approve it. The board voted to approve the mayor to execute the change order after receiving state approval. Mayor Watters said we will have to secure funds for the water plant itself but this has to be done first.

Paving

Mayor Watters stated we have two roads that have the most needed paving. Knox Road would cost about $340,000 and Neville Road would cost about $235,000; both are estimates. She said Knox has high truck traffic right and we should wait until the new subdivision comes in there. Neville Road is more residential that hasn’t been paved in years. They have $250,000 in the budget for paving. After some discussion, the board voted to pave Neville first.

Walking Trails

    The mayor said we have two walking trails that need repairs and the funds come from Parks and Recreation. This is funded from their annual barbecue contest. One trail is at Saunders Creek and it’s located close to the creek and it’s eroding. Signs are up to close that trail. There is a 200 foot stretch where the bank is coming into the trail. Verner said there is room to re-route it from the creek using the common open space. That will require more right-of-way easements too from the homeowner’s association. A drop pipe is needed in the creek for water flow.

    Mayor Watters stated that the other trail goes around the lake and the problem there is tree roots, some flooding, and beaver issues. The north side of the trail is part of a grant, and the town has to maintain it. The other side runs behind Huntington Pointe and has the same problem as Saunders Creek. Some of that is closed too. They have about $200,000 to throw at this. After some discussion, it was decided they need to get bids on both to see what the actual cost will be. It was stated that the walking trails are a highlight of the town and enjoyed by all residents.

New Alderman

   Mayor Watters announced the Alderman Sherrie Rinehart is resigning and moving out of town. She has been a great asset to the town by getting grants and bringing the food trucks in the summer. A motion was made and passed to accept her resignation.

Mayor Watters said we have a very qualified candidate with Gary York for alderman. He is serving on the Industrial Development Board as chairman and he is willing to help with anything. The oath of office was handled by city attorney Tom Minor.

Workshop

   The board set up a workshop to review their sign ordinance. There are some changes in the federal law they need to consider, said Mayor Watters. It was set for August 19 at 6 pm. Tom Minor asked if this is in reference to the lawsuit of Oakland’s and she said partially. Minor is waiting for the attorney general opinion on this. Watters said we also need to look at all their signs too.

Last was the announcement that Silver Hills Bakery has purchased the old Kellogg’s building in town and the town is excited to have them come. The business is based in north Washington state. They are in the process of ordering equipment and ovens and hiring a plant manager.