Public works details equipment, cemetery and parks priorities; staff flags PFAS and filter‑media timing

Department heads delivered extended updates on operations and capital needs. In his water department report, Steve described emergency work during the outage, thanking linemen and public works crews for keeping the system running and noting that planned backup procedures limited downtime: "instead of 2 hours, we were only down 5 hours, and it could have been a whole lot worse." He emphasized tower and lift‑station monitoring and bypass pumping to maintain service.

Public works staff reviewed a multi‑year capital list that included lift‑station upgrades, a proposed new gantry lift to reset leaning monuments, replacement of a wood chipper and a scissor lift and consideration of a new vac/sewer camera truck. Staff discussed rehab options for a cemetery vault building dated to 1920 and sought cost estimates before deciding whether to preserve it. Parks staff reported the Riverbend Park bridge is closed for structural reasons and that a full replacement is under preliminary engineering review; they said a kayak launch and pavilion remain grant candidates with DNR if adjacent land is secured.

Water staff also raised emerging regulatory concerns about PFAS and said the EPA’s rulemaking will likely require filtration changes in future, so they are delaying media replacement decisions until federal requirements are final. Council members asked staff to bring cost estimates and timing for equipment replacements and cemetery repairs to a future meeting.