More tests planned for city building (09/25/07)

DUNKIRK - Tests for mold, bacteria and air quality continue at city hall, which remains open part-time due to problems with odor and mildew.

"We've got a building where massive amounts of money have been spent in past years, and the building is not in good shape," Mayor Sam Hubbard said at Monday's city council meeting, which was moved to the West Jay Community Center because of the issues at city hall.

Those issues include water, mold and bacteria in the basement, a roof which may need repair or replacement, and possibly unhealthy levels of pigeon droppings on the second floor of the building.

Preliminary tests have revealed mold and bacteria in the building - especially in the basement area.

Hubbard said that he plans to have city employees Howard Fisher and Greg Buckner start checking the basement area for leaks as well as conduct some smoke-testing of sewer lines this week.

"We will try to locate the problem and then figure out the cost to fix it," Hubbard said, adding that he certainly considered the problem to be a serious one, "making it bad for the people who work there."

While updating members of the council, city clerk-treasurer Jane Kesler said Monday that preliminary findings have revealed the presence of mold and bacteria growth.

She said testing laboratory representatives have told her that water marks in the city hall basement indicate there have been large quantities of standing water there on several occasions. She said that the first step in solving the problems appears to be finding the source of this water, which may contain sewage.

Kesler said one of the testing firm officials warned that city workers should not go onto the second floor of the city hall due to the presence of pigeon droppings. At one time pigeons were getting into the second floor of the building through a trap door to the roof where the wood was rotten.

Kesler said that while the testing procedures are continuing, she and other city officials have no idea how much the eventual bills for all the tests will total.

Also she said that preliminary studies show major roof repairs are needed on the city hall, too.

Meanwhile councilman Tom Johnson advised city officials about more bad news. He said that West Jay Community Center officials recently told him there would be no charge to the city for using the WJCC for meetings through the rest of the year, but afterwards they would start charging.

In other business at Monday night's meeting, council members:

•Heard a presentation from Michael Stafford of the Stafford Insurance Agency, Muncie, about renewing the city's employee health insurance policy. He said Anthem Blue Cross-Blue Shield was asking for an 11 percent rate hike in the city's present plan, but alternative plans could be selected to save money.

The proposed increase would raise monthly premiums to $16,102, Stafford said. The matter was tabled, pending further discussion between city officials and employees.

•Set Halloween trick-or-treat hours for 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 31.

•Discussed the need for additional street lighting in the Leisure Lane area to help curb vandalism.

•Noted that city officials would be meeting with contractor and engineering representatives this week to review plans for water service interruptions in connection with the Ind. 167 water main relocation project, now in progress.

•Reminded residents that the council will meet in special session at 4:45 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, in West Jay Community Center for a second public hearing on the proposed 2008 city budget.

[[In-content Ad]]DUNKIRK - A hot potato issue went from the back burner into the fire of discussion Monday night.

Dunkirk resident and former city councilman Dan Watson asked why no action had been taken on proceeding with plans to get a preliminary engineering study grant to review the need for a new water plant in the city.

This should have been "a no-brainer," Watson told the council members, as he said in his opinion the proposal had never been properly explained.

The issue of accepting the proposed $15,000 United States Department of Agriculture grant was tabled at a council meeting on Aug. 13 amid allegations that Dunkirk Mayor Sam Hubbard was trying to play politics with the need for water system improvements.

At the time, Hubbard admitted that he had signed papers applying for the grant without first seeking council approval, but said he did not have political motives.

Members of the council, after hearing from Watson and water department superintendent Dace Mumbower, accepted the grant.

At Monday's meeting, Watson emphasized the importance of the grant application, noting that other communities throughout the country would be thrilled with having received such tentative approval.

He added that if Dunkirk didn't act soon to formally accept the grant, the funds would be given to one of those other communities.

Watson, who is Jay County Engineer, said former Jay County Community Developer Wayne Bailey had talked with him about the grant proposal, saying that he didn't feel it was ever explained properly to city officials. Now employed by Commonwealth Engineering Inc., Indianapolis, Bailey filled out the grant application signed by the mayor in August.

Watson said that Bailey could not understand why the city was not eager to accept the grant which would give the city $15,000 to pay for a preliminary engineering study, required to apply for a much larger USDA water system improvement grant. The city's cost would be a 25 percent matching amount of $5,000.

"It's a no-brainer to me," Watson said. "Wayne Bailey is looking out for what's best for the city of Dunkirk," he added, noting that the city would not be under any obligation to use Commonwealth Engineering to handle the engineering work for the entire project.

"I urge you to accept the grant and pay the $5,000. I think you need to move forward," Watson said.

"Let's do something and get the water improvements done," the former council member added.

Also Watson pointed out that he heard city officials refer to this grant idea as "a feasibility study," when in reality it is a "preliminary engineering design study," required by USDA officials to apply for much larger construction grants.

"It's not a feasibility study," Watson stressed.

Mumbower explained the need for the engineering study in more detail, and then Watson added, "The USDA needs an answer on this or they'll give the money to someone else. That's the way I understand it."

On a motion by Connie Whetsel, council member in charge of the city water department, seconded by Tom Johnson, the USDA grant offer was accepted with Whetsel, Johnson and councilman Larry Smith voting in favor of it. Councilmen Craig Faulkner and Jim Doughty were absent from the meeting.