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Finance committee approves purchase of replacement generators for two water towers
Summary
The City Council finance meeting approved buying two diesel emergency generators for the Civic and Cannon water towers after staff said existing units are not serviceable; the purchase passed 6-0 with installation work to follow under normal electrical-contractor practice.
At a July 21 City Council finance meeting, aldermen approved buying replacement emergency generators for the Civic and Cannon water towers after staff said the existing units are not serviceable. Alderman Dimas moved the purchase and Alderman Reynolds seconded; the measure passed on a 6-0 roll call vote.
The city will buy two standalone diesel generators and accompanying transfer switches, at a unit price of $33,600 and a total purchase price of $67,200, a city staff member said. “They are not economical to repair the shape they're in,” the city staff member said, adding that the current units are “more of a low end residential grade.”
The staff member said the current generators run on propane and require rental of large propane tanks and annual fuel purchases. The replacement units would run on diesel and include a transfer switch; the quoted price covers the generator and transfer switch only, not electrical hookup or final installation by the city’s electrical contractor. When asked whether installation was included, the staff member said it was not, and aldermen noted that the city’s electric contractor has handled hookups for recent generators.
Staff outlined the equipment and systems the new generators would serve: SCADA for water supply, the residential water meter collector, police and fire communications radios, a dispatch radio at the Civic site, and the outdoor warning siren at the Cannon site. The staff member said the fire department can supply temporary power during an outage but that is not a long-term solution.
Discussion focused on the condition of the existing units and the functions the replacements must support rather than financing details; funding source for the purchase was not specified in the meeting record. Following the vote, aldermen asked for no additional comment from the public and the meeting moved on and later adjourned.
The motion to purchase the generators passed 6-0. No public comments were recorded on the item during the finance meeting.
