Water main breaks plagued Shawnee during the arctic winter last year. The city is now looking at ARPA money to replace outdated water lines.
At the Nov. 21 City Commission meeting, Assistant City Manager Jacob Foos gave a presentation over the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding that the City of Shawnee has received in the past year.
The funding includes a total of $8,351,474 allocated from the US Treasury, which will be utilized for the renewal of water and wastewater infrastructure. The city was also designated $9,931,194 by the State of Oklahoma for similar projects.
Foos said, “We have approximately 241 miles of water mains and 193 miles of sanitary sewer. Of those lines, 150 miles, or almost 35 percent, are over 50 years old and exceed their useful life. The extreme weather events in February of last year further highlighted the water and wastewater system deficiencies. In one week there were over 30 water main breaks, and for that year, we saw over 300 water main breaks and sewer system incidents. In recent years, the city has budgeted approximately $1.2 million each year for the re-placement of water and wastewater lines, which only scratches the most critical infrastructure leads for the system.”
Following the presentation, the Commission voted yes to an agreement with Cowan Group Engineering, LLC, for their design services on one of the ARPA funded water distribution and wastewater collection projects. As well as a task order for the project, for a total of $255,750.
According to a memo by Director of Engineering Seth Barkimer, “The identified project will be a removal and replacement of an existing water main along Independence Street, Mark Street, and Kiowa Street, and a looping/ extension project along Center Avenue.”
The Board voted also to allow city staff to move forward on an application for another ARPA grant from the OWRB for further work on water and wastewater projects across the city. If awarded the funds, the city would receive up to $1,692,417.94 and would have to provide a 50% match in funds.
Two agreements were approved based on staff recommendation with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) for highway illumination and traffic signals along US-270B.
According to a memo by Barkimer, “In February of 2016, the City of Shawnee entered into a project agreement with ODOT for the Kickapoo Widening from Kickapoo-Spur to Farrall Street.”
A declaration was also approved to list several pieces of City survey equipment as personal property surplus. The items will be sold by auction, and are estimated to value between $21,000 to $30,000.
The equipment included:
• GPS with Multitrack Target, Robotic Power Kit, Battery Charger, Dual Trimax Clamp
• TSC3 including Pole Clamp, Cradle Assembly, Robotic Pole
• R10 GPS with Internal 410-470 MHZ Radio
• Trimble GPS, Handheld” During Citizens Participation, citizen Rob Morris brought up an issue circulating on social media recently, regarding the DOC allegedly dropping off members of the homeless community in Shawnee.
Following the claim, Representative Dell Kerbs also spoke in regard to the issue.
He said, “First and foremost, a year and a half ago, we did have a Department of Corrections DOC vehicle drop a recently released inmate out on their own accord with an address that was not a verified address. They had no ties to Shawnee, no communication, [and] no support system setup. After calling and verifying that, the video was provided to my office…So, we corrected that problem.”
Kerbs said anyone released from incarceration under the DOC or DOJ must have a predetermined parole officer, support system, and location of housing. He also encouraged citizens to contact his state office if they have concerns on the matter, so the topic can be investigated by them further.
During Commissioners Comments, Mayor Ed Bolt replied, “The notion that anyone serving on the City Commission would hide information of this type if it, in fact, was true, is totally false and would not happen. If DOC or any other organization was, in fact, dumping people in Shawnee, we would take immediate action to stop that from happening. We all take this job very seriously and want nothing but the best for Shawnee. We all live here too. We want to live in the best community possible.”
