GC City council gives go ahead for design and engineering of WWTP improvements
GLENWOOD CITY — The Glenwood City common council authorized Cedar Corporation to proceed with the design and construction engineering services for improvements to the city’s Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) during its regular monthly meeting Monday evening, February 19.
Kevin Oium of Cedar Corporation in Menomonie attended the meeting and informed the council that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources had approved the city’s facility plan for the WWTP.
Oium also told council members that the total construction cost including contingency would be $1.3 million in accordance to the facility plan. That cost rises, however, to $1.5 million when engineering, administration and legal fees are added in, according to Oium.
Like the city’s new well project, Oium said the city could look at securing some grant funds to help offset the cost of the WWTP improvements.
One of the funding mechanisms that the city used to aid construction of the new well, the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), would also be available for the WWTP project said Oium.
According to Oium, in order to maximize the amount of the grant, the project would have be at least $1 million. Based on a 50-50 split, Oium said the city could be awarded up to $500,000 for the WWPT improvement project. Stipulations require the municipality to qualify as low to moderate income, which Glenwood City does, in order to make an application for the grant which would be due this May.
Oium also said that another funding source that is being looked at is the Clean Water Fund which is a sister program to Safe Drinking Water program that was used by the city to fund the new well. That would offer the city taxpayers principal forgiveness if the application is successful said Oium. It comes with a low interest loan as well which Oium felt the city would get but acceptance and approval of the grant portion was the unknown.
Oium then took the council through the tentative construction schedule for the WWTP improvements with construction set to begin in the fall/winter of 2019 with completion slated for the following spring or summer.
Council members Terry Klinger, Ken Peterson, Ben DeGross, Pete Gaustad and Steve Lee all voted yes to move forward with the project. Mayor John Larson and council person Nancy Hover were not in attendance.
Glenwood City Fire Chief Greg Holden was also in attendance and updated the council on some issues.
Holden said the St. Croix County Fire Chiefs Association is in the process of creating a policy for cancer prevention.
Holden told the council that the number one killer of firefighters is not heart disease but cancer from the substances, materials and chemicals that comprise many household items.
The new Cancer Prevention Standard Operating Guidelines (SOG) will go into effect for the local fire department at its March meeting according to Holden.
Basically the department will use hoods that would cover the head, face and neck of the firefighters.
Holden stated that studies have shown that the cancer is coming from the jaw and neck lines of firefighters.
The department will be purchasing two hoods for every firefighter, allowing each to have a clean hood when responding to fire calls. Holden said the used hoods will have to be put into a container when firefighters return to the hall following a call. Those hoods will then be cleaned and dried.
Holden stated that it was one more step the department was taking to protect its firefighters.
Chief Holden also informed the council that the department had recently received a donation of 20 air packs from United Fire Department which will now allow every firefighter on the department to have their own air mask.
In other action, the council approved a $100 donation to the Glenwood City Post Prom Committee.
Operator licenses for John A. Hanson, Molli A. Viertel, Winter G. McIntyre and Janine E. Jeske were approved. All applications went through a background check performed by Police Chief Bob Darwin according to city clerk-treasurer Shari Rosenow.
The council then discussed updates to the city’s ordinances book.