By JOHN HOFHEIMER
Leader staff writer
The city of Lonoke issued building permits worth $16.6 million in 2010, including an $8.4 million Lonoke High School addition, the $5.4 million County Detention Center and the $953,000 St. Vincent’s Medical Clinic, Mayor Wayne McGee said Monday night in his state of the city report.
Outside of that, the new $377,000 county shop building adjacent to the jail, and three new homes were the only projects worth more than $100,000.
The mayor’s report didn’t note the opening of several new businesses in town, including Atwood’s Farm Supply, two telephone-service providers and at least two restaurants.
He said despite new representation in Washington, he still hoped the new Hwy. 89/I-40 interchange on the west side of Lonoke would be built.
He said former state Sen. Bobby Glover, out of public office for the first time since 1964, had written letters of support for the project to the new state senators and representatives from the area, as well as to the state’s new congressional delegation.
The mayor reported that he expected to build a five-foot wide sidewalk along Palm Street from Lincoln Street to South Center Street with a Safe-Ways-to-Schools grant. He said the city also would be repaving School Street and some of College Street when construction of the new high school is finished.
“Be patient,” he said. “We’re trying to do the best we can with what we got. The way the economy is, we’ve been very fortunate. If we stick together and work hard, a lot of good things (will) come.”
Much of the real business of the city is looking after its aging water, sewer and street infrastructure, and public safety.
“We laid new water line to the new jail—275 feet of pipe and another 500 feet of smaller lines costing about $4,000.,” he said.
Doing street repairs and other work, the city used 890 tons of gravel, 254 tons of cold mix, 56 tons of sand and 11 loads of topsoil.
Also last year, the city laid about 2,200 feet of culvert pipe, ranging from 6-inch to 48-inch, the mayor said, at a cost of about $13,890.
The city bought a John Deere backhoe for $54,000.
“We repaired 2,405 square feet of city streets,” McGee said, “and mopped or dug out 49.5 blocks of ditches.”
“We installed new six-gauge waterproof wire for aerators and the sewage lagoons at a cost of $5,068, repaired 359 main and service water line breaks and replaced 80 water meters.”
The water department re-paired 359 main and service water leaks and replaced 80 water meters.
“The year before last, we found out where the flood plain was,” McGee said, and this year the drought resulted in cracked pipes and breaking,” he said.
The city has some expensive work to be done with its water and sewer infrastructure, and the council has begun talking about raising water rates.
Currently, its base monthly residential rate for 1,000 gallons of water is $9.60. Carlisle’s rate is $10.04, but then it’s $12.09 in England, $14.28 in Ward and $14.28 in Beebe.
A $1 monthly increase would raise about $1,700 a month.
Its sewer rate for the first $1,000 is $6.61, which is greater than Ward’s $4, but less than $6.85 in Carlisle, $8.15 in Beebe and $8.53 in England.
“We’re working to get better quality water,” McGee said.
With some guidance from City Attorney Camille Bennett, the council voted unanimously to allow Atwood’s to carry baby chicks, guineas, ducks and turkeys for sale.
The city approved an ordinance a few years ago prohibiting livestock in the city limits, and a stipulation of allowing Atwood’s an exemption was that the store post a notice that such animals could not be kept in the city.
Store manager Keith Jones agreed.
For the city public-works department, the council ap-proved purchase of a “street saw,” for $1,758, plus the cost of some blades for the saw.
It approved advertising for bids to buy the city a new leaf vacuum truck.
Public works supervisor Brian Whitworth reported that the electronic controls on the sewage-discharge pipe valves were fried and that he was looking for new controls.
The council approved putting new valves out for bids, buying 900 feet of forced sewer main, getting bids to fix the failing sewer and tank at the water pump station, repairing the dump-truck transmission and getting bids for fencing and a gate for the new entrance to the city shop.
It authorized Volunteer Fire Department Chief George Rich to buy a new brush fire truck for as much as $25,000.
Lonoke Police Chief Mike Wilson told the council that the state Department of Finance and Administration would pay $7,220 for a new Breathalyzer for the department because the Health Department had ruled that the old model was no longer suitable.
The council authorized Wilson to buy a 2008 Crown Victoria from the Kansas Highway Police for $13,700 and as much as another $3,300 to outfit it with a police package.
The council authorized parks director Roy Lewis to fix the city park gazebo for $4,280, and to spend $5,189 to plant 10 willow oak trees, four to eight inches diameter at the base, and to have them secured with posts and wire and fence on a shadeless ball field at the city park. The job will be done by House Nursery and Landscaping. The trees will be 15 to 20 feet tall, Lewis said.
He said summer baseball and softball registration would be for the next three Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Lonoke Community Center.
The council authorized community center director Mike Brown to spend $1,026 on a remote door lock for the gymnasium so it can be controlled from the personnel at the check-in desk, and also spend $1,999 for a rowing machine for the exercise mezzanine.
The Lonoke community blood drive will be at the Community Center from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m., Feb. 21.
