Small Town News

Lovell residents asked to conserve water Monday as new water lines tied in

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The Town of Lovell is asking residents to be very careful with their water usage next Monday, Sept. 20, when the town ties the Shoshone Municipal Pipeline - the town's sole source of water - into the new transmission lines that have been laid as part of the ongoing water and sewer infrastructure project.

Town administrative assistant Scott Campbell said that on Monday at 7 a.m., water from the pipeline will be shut off so the tie-in work can be conducted. At that point, Campbell said, town residents will get tbeir water only from the town's two water tanks.

"We'll have the tanks as full as we can get 'em, "Campbell said.

Campbell said the tanks hold enough water - 1 million gallons or more - to supply the town for several days, even at peak usage, and if consumers conserve, they shouldn't notice any change. He said the contractor hopes to have the tie-in completed in 10 hours or less, and he said work will continue day and night until the work is completed and the pipeline can be turned back on.

"We have every confidence that a million gallons is sufficient to handle several days of use, not just one, "Campbell said. He said the only thing people might notice is a drop in water pressure after a few hours on the tanks.

CONSERVATION

The town is asking residents to conserve Monday by not watering lawns or washing cars. He said there was a concern about water usage at the sugar factory,

but he said the factory only uses town water as a backup, not for the majority of operations.

Campbell said the average water usage in Lovell is 367, 000 gallons a day this time of year, so it would take three days to drain the tanks, but that's at peak usage, and Campbell said the tanks would last even longer with conservation.

But that's not expected to be a problem, Campbell said, with 24 hours being a "worst-case scenario."

Water and sewer project engineer Frank Page of DOWL/HKM Engineering told the town council at Tuesday night's regular September council meeting that contractor Wilson Brothers Construction will tie into the new water mains at the pressure reduction valve station west of town, and he said the process is estimated to take eight to 12 hours.

"We're hoping for the best but preparing for the worst, "Page said. "We're asking people to curtail water use until it's connected again. If everything goes well, nobody will notice the connection process."

PROJECT UPDATE

Page gave an update on the rest of the water and sewer project Tuesday night. He said the crossing at Main and Hampshire has been going well, with the contractor expected to finish work on the north lanes Wednesday and work moving to the two south lanes today (Thursday), with traffic moved to the north.

Concrete will then be poured two lanes at a time, with curing expected to takefrom seven to 14 days on each pour.

As for the rest of the Southwest/Transmission Line phase of the project, Page said, the project is running "smoothly, "with final pressure, bacteria and video testing being done over the next two weeks and final concrete and base course work under way. Final paving should begin around the first of October, Page said.

Concrete work on the Safe Routes to School project on Seventh Street has been almost completed, Page said, and the project is on hold until paving begins for the water and sewer project, at which time the SRTS project will have 31 days to complete striping and sign work. The project is under budget, he said, which might allow some additional items to be completed.

SOUTH PROJECT

Moving on to next year's South project, Page said planning is going well, and he asked the council for a letter to the USDA Rural Utilities Service requesting authorization to use Additional Services Funds - a line item in the project budget -- to help obtain easements for the project in the form of survey work, property records research and preparation of easement documents.

Areas of concern, Page said, are an easement at the Wyoming National Guard Armory, the Globe Canal agreement, identification of property lines along the Nevada-Garfield waterline, a sewer easement from Ninth and Montana across the Globe Canal to the upper bench and other needs that may come up as research continues.

The council expressed concern that Page could not provide a figure of how

much Additional Services Funds would need to be expended to complete the work, although he said DOWL/HKM would work as efficiently as possible and that costs are expected to be reasonable. There is some $46, 000 in the Additional Services budget line item, he said, for miscellaneous items, but the easement work is expected to cost much less than that.

Page said the project cannot go to bid without the necessary easements in place, and Councilman Scott Allred noted, "We have to allow this to do what we've got to do."

Allred eventually made the motion to authorize the mayor to sign the letter of request to RUS. The motion passed unanimously with Councilman Bruce Wolsey absent.

LOVELL CLAY LOTS

In other project action Tuesday, the council held a public hearing regarding the marketing and sale of the lots at the Lovell Clay Subdivision. Jim Szlemko asked if the town would ever make money on the project after all of the fees and costs were factored in, and Town Treasurer Valerie Beal produced the results of a recent appraisal, with lots ranging from $6, 000 to $10, 000.

When marketed by the Wyoming Housing Opportunities Association, the lots were being sold for $11, 500 each, Allred said, though he added that he wasn't sure what the town's original outlay for infrastructure was.

Mayor Bruce Morrison said the town spent more than $160, 000 on the project and at appraised value, he said, "No, we're not going to recoup all of that. They were up for sale at $11, 500, so we're not going to come out (ahead)."

But Councilman Brian Dickson countered, "In a way, we will. Currently we're not receiving any tax money on the lots. When they're sold and developed, there will be a tax base there. Eventually we will recoup (funds) on improved lots. By advertising more, it's probable that they will eventually be sold."

Later in the meeting, the council discussed a pair of proposals from local realtors West Agency and Johnson Home and Land. It was reported that Johnson Home and Land would market the lots at 6 percent commission but with a $1, 250 per lot minimum, while West Agency would market the lots at 6 percent with no minimum.

A question arose about whether West Agency was a member of the Multiple Listing Service. After discussion, the council voted to table the agenda item and negotiate further with the two realty companies.



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© 2011 The Lovell Chronicle Lovell, Wyoming. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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