Upgrade at lift station gets OK

Residents on the southwest side of Portland should soon see water recede faster in times of heavy rain.

Portland Board of Works on Friday approved nearly $90,000 in improvements to the Gerber Lift Station on Floral Avenue.

The board also approved the purchase of one piece of equipment for the city’s street department while tabling the decision on another.

Board members Jerry Leonhard, Bill Gibson and Mayor Randy Geesaman approved the upgrades for the lift station at a total of $87,855.31. They had already approved the purchase of a new pump for the station in November.

With the new pump installed, the lift station is expected to be able to handle 300 gallons of water per minute. That will be up from the current 100.

The board also approved the purchase of a road patcher from Hoosier Equipment, which had the low bid of $67,180. The other bids came from Schwarze Industries ($77,117) and Southeastern Equipment ($78,120).

Rather than purchasing the equipment outright, the city plans to go through the Indiana Bond Bank and make payments over the course of the next three years.

Board members tabled a decision on purchasing a new payloader in order to take the time to get more information. They had three quotes — $133,650 for a Case IH from RPM Machinery, $154,567.68 for a John Deere from Westside Tractor Sales and $164,000 for a Caterpillar from MacAllister Machinery.

In other business, the board:

•Granted a one-time sewage bill adjustment for an Arch Street resident for $42.18. She had a leak in her line between the house and the street.

•Introduced new police officer Kyle Denney, who had been serving as a reserve for the department.