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City administrator outlines street projects, tree survey, utility upgrades and data-center water usage
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Summary
City Administrator Tobias reported on street closures for sewer work, playground installations, airport hangar construction, a tree inventory (3,377 right-of-way trees; about 74 flagged for removal), electric system upgrades with long transformer lead times, and clarified that RadianTech data center uses no municipal water.
City Administrator Tobias gave the council a broad monthly update on ongoing capital and maintenance work across Beatrice.
Road and playground work: Tobias said 'orange cone season' has begun, citing a Dorsey Street closure for a sanitary sewer connection and an Ella Street project expected to last about 45 days. He also noted playground equipment is being installed at Heritage Heights and that a Stoddard School playground installation is pending drainage work.
Trees and federal rules: Tobias said a recent street-right-of-way tree survey identified 3,377 trees and about 74 that should be removed (roughly 2 percent). He cautioned that federal grant rules bar removing trees after April 15 because of migratory-bird nesting windows, meaning some tree-removal work cannot proceed until later in the year.
Utility infrastructure: Tobias described upgrades funded by bonds issued by the Board of Public Works to improve electric reliability, including substation work and distribution upgrades that have been phased over many years. He warned of long lead times for transformers and major components—"about a year or something"—and said the city issued bonds to place orders and stage work as deliveries arrive.
Airport and emergency services: Tobias reported that the airport hangar project has started using a congressional appropriation secured in 2023. He also said a recently acquired ambulance is undergoing final transition steps after a multi-year process.
Data center water use: Mayor Robert Morgan and staff addressed rumors the local data center was tapping municipal water. Morgan said the facility (RadianTech) is air-cooled and that city checks show zero municipal water usage for its operations: "We checked the water usage, and they're 0." The council emphasized coordination with large electricity users when planning utility upgrades.
Tobias closed the report by noting that many of the city’s capital plans are coordinated with state or federal partners and that timing for construction often depends on external schedules, equipment delivery and grant cycles.
