LAHARPE — LaHarpe is a step closer to once again having a local police presence.
LaHarpe City Council members Wednesday scheduled a special meeting next Wednesday to interview two finalists among seven applicants to become the city’s next law enforcement officer. The 2:30 p.m. adjourned meeting at City Hall is open to the public, although the interviews likely will be done privately.
Because of budget restrictions, the position will be part-time, Council members said.
Council members also agreed to add to the workload for crews set to sandblast and repaint the city’s water tower, putting the project’s accumulated price tag at $54,000.
Cunningham Sandblasting of Joplin, Mo., was hired previously to redo the interior of the water tower at a cost of $25,000 with the assumption the city would look at repainting the exterior next year.
Those plans changed when Cunningham offered a discounted price for the exterior, at $29,000. That figure was about $8,500 less than what had been proposed earlier. Cunningham also agreed to put off billing for the exterior work until 2011, City Superintendent Carol Buzbee said. The city already has funds budgeted for the interior and could use capital outlay money next year for the exterior.
“But we have to realize, that once we spend the money, it’s spent,” Council member Harry Lee Jr. said. “We can’t spend it twice.”
Mayor Lloyd Wayne Turner noted that allocating funds from next year’s capital outlay may force the Council to raise the city’s property tax mill levy next year for other projects.
The vote to expand the water tower work passed 4-1, with Ron Knavel Sr. opposed.
Buzbee said the crews should be on site within the next few weeks.
NOW THAT City Hall has been relocated to the old LaHarpe Elementary School building, Council members agreed the city has no use for a pair of nearby modular buildings that formerly served as classrooms.
They agreed to sell one of the buildings for $505 to Clark Cason of rural LaHarpe. The fate of the other classroom has not yet been decided.
And the city will look at bids for any roof repairs, if necessary, to City Hall. A few minor leaks have been patched. Council members agreed further assessment is necessary before deciding whether more extensive roof work is necessary.
In a related matter, Teresa Driskel of rural Moran will rent the old City Hall building on Main Street, once a lease agreement is reached. Driskel has proposed opening a retail store to sell clothing, antiques, dry goods and other merchandise.
City Hall’s spacious building has room for a library, Council members noted. They had discussed in recent months whether to pose a question to local voters whether to have a tax levy for a new library.
Those plans were put on hold because of the potential for a drop box library, in which boxes of books are shipped in periodically by the Southeast Kansas Library System, then traded out when new books arrive.
LaHarpe resident Ruth Jackson suggested the city look at hiring a part-time activities director to oversee the library and other local projects.
Lee noted that the city would qualify for such a federal job training program in which a qualified senior citizen would receive federal funds to work for the city on a temporary basis.
“We would need to write up a job description that matches our needs with their requirements,” Lee said.
That option will be discussed further.
A LARGE portion of LaHarpe’s streets in the southwest part of town will be repaired. Council members approved a milling and resurfacing project for the streets south of Sixth and west of Main.
Buzbee said ditches along the streets also will be repaired if necessary to improve water drainage.
A similar project last year cost about $24,000, although that price tag is sure to increase this summer because of the higher price of oil, Buzbee said.
Council members accepted a contract from Ken Luken to handle its mowing services. The bid of $30 per property for bush-hogging or $50 per property for finish mowing was the only bid received.
The city previously rejected two bids for mowing services because of a discrepancy in the offers.
COUNCIL members approved the purchase of a $400 chainsaw for the LaHarpe Volunteer Fire Department and authorized spending up to $100 to purchase a refrigerator for city employees at City Hall.
They also authorized the LaHarpe Days Committee use of the city’s softball diamond for an overnight tournament Aug. 20-21 as part of the annual LaHarpe Day celebration.
