City staff provided project updates on sidewalk construction, a planned bore across Second East near the railroad, and a Main Street water tie-in; council took votes on an LTAC invoice authorization and on replacement HVAC units for a municipal building.

Invoice and sidewalk grant: City staff said the current phase of sidewalk construction is funded in part by a Local Tourism and Convention (LTAC) grant and by previously approved city funds. The council approved a motion authorizing the mayor to sign an invoice to LTAC for the project; the motion passed on a voice vote with all members responding “Aye.” Staff said the project is part of a multi-phase sidewalk program totaling several hundred thousand dollars in grants across years and that the current invoice will allow work to continue on the next block.

HVAC replacement: The council approved replacing two aging HVAC units in a city building after staff reported the units are more than 30 years old and failing. A bid or estimate discussed in the meeting was $24,280 to replace both units; a motion to proceed with the replacement was moved and seconded and passed on voice vote.

Main Street bore and Second East crossing: Public works staff described a planned casing/tunneling operation to place a new water main beneath Union Pacific tracks on Second East. Staff said they will survey the site, set up pits and undertake a multi-day installation that will require coordination with the railroad and flagging crews. The contractor planned three days of around-the-clock operations to complete the bore work and will coordinate with Union Pacific for track access and safety.

Staff warned that utility tie-ins and the condition of existing mains create a risk of localized outages. For a Main Street tie-in the city discussed valve locations and acknowledged the tie-in may require a short water shutdown for a handful of customers (including a laundromat and several nearby businesses and residences) depending on which valves hold. Public works said it prefers to perform critical shutdown work during off hours and will notify affected businesses and residents in advance.

Council direction and contingency planning: Councilmembers asked staff to prepare for potential outages by notifying affected businesses, having replacement pipe and fittings available, and planning for emergency bottled water distribution if necessary. Staff said they would coordinate timing to minimize customer disruption and consider doing the most disruptive work overnight.

Ending: Staff said they would continue to notify the public and businesses of exact dates and to provide contingency plans. Council authorized the mayor to sign the LTAC invoice to allow the sidewalk contractor to be paid and approved the HVAC replacements; the bore/tie-in work remains scheduled subject to final coordination with Union Pacific and city crews.