HUMBOLDT — A generator that went on the fritz at the solid waste treatment plant is of immediate concern for council members here. COUNCIL members agreed to continue a lease agreement that makes a portion of the old City Hall available as an ambulance station. DRUG AND alcohol testing of employees will be done in-house.
Improvements are being made to the plant through assistance of BG Consultants, Manhattan, including upgrades to five lift stations that were completed last week.
Generator problems were not expected.
Though seldom used, the generator is crucial if a prolonged power outage were to occur. Without power, sewage could be processed only a matter of days, depending on the load, before the plant would be overwhelmed.
Clifford Power, Tulsa, has reserved a generator at $1,800 a month, which could be brought to Humboldt and installed in a day’s time, as an interim measure.
That’s where BG Consultants comes in.
Karen Weathers, a BG engineer, said she would obtain a second bid for repairs — the first through Clifford Power was for $8,555 — and also arrange to have an electrical engineer come to Humboldt to determine the extent of the generator’s problems.
If the city decides on a new machine — one fired by natural gas would be preferred over the diesel model in place — cost would be $25,000 or more.
With generator repairs or replacement on the front burner, council members, at the urging of Mayor Nobby Davis, declined to apply for a Kansas Department of Health and Environment grant to upgrade recycled rubber bedding around playground equipment in Humboldt’s three parks, Cannon, Camp Hunter and Centennial.
Cost would have been about $18,000, with the KDHE grant responsible for half.
“We have bigger fish to fry” with the generator, Davis said.
Councilwoman Joann Evans agreed.
“We need to concentrate on ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessibility at the parks,” an ongoing concern of the city, she said, rather than pursue another project.
The agreement, which City Attorney Fred Works said had no changes in basic elements, “just substitutes Iola for Allen County” with the merger of ambulance services Jan. 1. It will have Iola pay $1 a year rent and for the city to bear cost of utilities.
Also, Weide Cemetery Services will be given another year’s lease of the main portion of old City Hall, with promise of a third year.
Using the building as a business incubator, the company paid no rent and a prorated portion of utilities. In 2014 rent will be $250 a month and utility payments.
The city has paid about $2,000 a year for a Wichita laboratory to do the testing; if done locally, cost will be $1,000 or less.
Police Chief Brian Dillow said a kit of 25 tests could be purchased for about $100. Test components will determine immediately whether illegal drugs or alcohol are presence in urine drawn from employees. If a test is positive, a laboratory will be employed to verify results.
Employees are tested periodically per Kansas Corporation Commission regulations since the city sells natural gas. Also, all new hires are tested.
Dillow said with six part-time police officers, in-house testing would be easier on them, not having to leave other jobs to accommodate testing done by a laboratory.
Council members approved a six-month unpaid leave of absence for Eugene Lundine, a maintenance worker who has been with the city for years.
Generator a concern for city
