SAC CITY, IOWA – MAY 24, 2010
1. Found lots of sewers and pipes, and have (hopefully) tied them all in.
2. Ready to do paving on the south end of south 5th.
3. Working on the head-works room at WWTP.
- About ready to put things back together.
4. Excavating flow equalization basin.
5. May have found a large source of infiltration.
6. It will cost extra $400.00 per hour to dig along suspected “Phantom Line” to discover what can’t be
filmed.
7. Will put gravel on street for a while to let it settle.
8. Frohardt discovered that the contractors like working in Sac City.
9. Phantom line is an 8” pipe.
- Running about 1/3 full on average.
- The water is running to the plant.
- Pump size at lift station was increased.
- Biggest culprit is an Audubon Street sewer, which is clear water.
10. Time to crack down on sump pumps and footing drains.
- New interesting way of getting people to let the city into inspect for pump outlined.
11. Lining is done (or close to being done) in park, 11th, Gishwiller, 12th.
- Noticeable at the WWTP.
- $24/foot ($9,000 per block) to line the pipe, (all inclusive)
12. A good share of infiltration is in private lines.
- will the city require that homeowners pay to bring their pipes up to code?
13. MidAmerican has become concerned about the power line into the WWTP.
- It is underground, and they want to put it on poles overhead.
- They have the sole right to tell the city where to put the transformer.
i. The extra $5K is to move the transformer.
14. Change order tabled until next council meet.
Copyright (c)2007-2010 Curtis Bloes All Rights Reserved
MidAmerican's decision to go overhead with their distribution lines saves them(electric company) significant construction costs as opposed to burying new cable, and as they said it is easier for them to maintain during an outage(though aesthetically not as pretty). But with the savings MEC will incur with this method of construction, the city should request that MEC foot the bill for extending the service from the new transformer location. We all know that MEC owner Warren Buffet is on budget trimming campaign, but then so is the city.
ReplyDeleteAn above-ground line may be easier to maintain - and cheaper to install - but below-ground lines do not snap in ice storms, do not get pulled down by falling tree limbs, do not pose a threat to large equipment travelling under or working around the lines, and generally require much less maintenance.
ReplyDeleteThe city should start pressuring MEC to start burying ALL of their lines here in town.
I agree, underground lines are generally less vulnerable to outages, but still take lightning shots, get gnawed on by critters, and if poorly installed prone to blow up. An underground fault will usually take longer to repair(much longer if there is frost)which would translate into longer standby generator operation at the plant.
ReplyDeleteIt would be nice not to see poles and wire, but it is a pipe dream to think MEC is ever going to bury the whole town and even if they did, they would never bury the high voltage transmission lines feeding the community. There's a better chance self-contained power units will be in every home and business within 20 years.
I say if MidAmerican Energy wants to upgrade their feed and change the design to the WWTP for whatever reasons they might have, and that requires relocating the transformer, and subsequently the city's service to the building, then MidAmerican should FOOT THE BILL. Why should this fall on the taxpayers' shoulders. These changes/costs should be built into the rate structure they charge the city every month!
ReplyDeleteMust not be franchise time??