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Council presses for lift-station upgrades and permanent generator after federal funding delays
Summary
Public works director Mike Schwank urged the council to advance upgrades to aging lift stations and add a permanent generator at the main station, saying federal PER funding timelines have slipped and local investment may be needed to avoid repeated outages; rough equipment cost estimates were discussed.
Blackduck’s council spent extended time discussing wastewater lift stations, aging equipment and emergency power after staff warned that anticipated federal funding could be delayed for years.
Mike Schwank, the city’s public works director, described multiple lift stations with differing pump sizes and maintenance needs and said the town should prioritize three existing stations and add repairs at a motel site behind the Drake. He recommended installing a permanent above-ground generator at the main lift station and wiring two smaller stations to accept a state-grant wheeled generator, which he said would substantially improve emergency response during storm-related outages.
Schwank and council members discussed operational details and costs: the PER (preliminary engineering report) funding timeline has slipped, and councilors said competing federal funding priorities make grant timing unpredictable. During discussion, participants cited a rough estimate of about $50,000 for a permanent generator and about $30,000 for portable units, though council members stressed these are preliminary figures that require firm quotes and engineering review.
Councilors also flagged site-specific concerns: one lift station behind a motel is effectively a sump-pump arrangement that staff said needs a full replacement; another station requires receptacles or hookups to run portable generators. Members raised emergency-management funding options, including exploring FEMA or EMA grant sources for generators.
Several council members said they want definitive cost estimates before committing to bonding or other local funding; they emphasized the trade-offs between seeking competitive grants (which can limit material/vendor choices) and locally controlled procurement (which allows specification of equipment but requires municipal expenditure). The council asked staff to develop detailed cost projections and to return with firm numbers for decision-making.
