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Commissioners authorize CDBG payment and approve time extension for Bridal (rural) Water District project
Summary
County commissioners approved a time extension to Dec. 31 and authorized a CDBG payment request of up to $194,492.56 to support the Bridal (rural) Water District project after engineers reported a lightning strike damaged a variable-frequency drive and telemetry equipment.
McPherson County commissioners on Sept. 23 approved a time extension and authorized a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) payment to support the Bridal (rural) Water District water system upgrades.
Rosemary Saunders, municipal consultant with Ransom Financial, and Doug Getz, an engineer with Wilson and Company, told the board the system is "substantially operational" but suffered a lightning strike that damaged a variable-frequency drive (VFD) and a telemetry panel at the new chlorination facility. Getz said the project team temporarily cannibalized a VFD from another well to restore service while a replacement unit was repaired by the factory and shipped from Mexico.
"We are substantially operational," Getz said, adding that remaining on-site work is limited to an estimated three to five days of field effort and a final KDHE (Kansas Department of Health and Environment) walkthrough. Getz asked the board to approve a three-month extension as a safeguard against shipment or scheduling delays; commissioners approved a time extension to Dec. 31 after a motion and recorded ayes.
Saunders presented a payment request for $194,492.56, indicating CDBG would pay $35,000 and state funds would cover the remaining balance. Speaker 1 moved to authorize the chairman to sign the CDBG payment request "not to exceed $194,492.56," a motion the board seconded and carried.
Getz said the district also applied for ARPA funds and reported that rehab work on wells 2 and 3 recovered the wells' original capacity. He described planned phase 2 work — replacing the old standpipe east of Roxbury and installing meters on other legs of the system to detect water loss — and said phase 3 planning is ongoing after the project received approximately $900,000 in loan agreement funds after applying for $500,000; KDHE must advise how the larger award can be used.
Getz estimated about six Marion County homes near the county line could now be served because the new, taller standpipe and a pressure-reducing valve restored adequate pressure on that side of the system.
Next steps: the board authorized the chairman to sign required documents and staff will continue coordination with KDHE, the contractor and the project engineer on final punch-list items and the VFD replacement.
