Transfer station dozer purchased; solid waste operation in city hands

    City officials found it a bit difficult to locate a used bulldozer to meet their needs as Imperial takes over sole operation of the county’s solid waste operation.
    After a lot of time searching, however, purchase of a nine-year-old dozer was approved at a meeting last week for transfer station use.
    At the March 15 city council meeting, a 4-0 vote approved purchase of the dozer for $128,000, which includes delivery from Murphy Tractor & Equipment Co. in Great Bend, Kansas.
    It will replace the county-owned dozer used at the transfer station when the county and city operated the solid waste agency (SWA) together.
    The city took over sole operation on Feb. 25 after agreements were signed dissolving the SWA and the bill of sale and deed to the property were transferred.
    The unit is a 2012 John Deere 750K that has 5,300 hours, said council member Doug Gaswick, who worked with Public Works Supt. Pat Davison in the search.
    It also has a new undercarriage, Gaswick said. He believes the used unit could last 10-15 years, and the cost is about a third of a new one.
    Funds to pay for the unit will come out of the city’s sanitation fund, based on last week’s discussion.
    While that will put the sanitation fund in a deficit, the council supported it coming from that fund so they can better track the expenses as they take over sole operation.
    The council also discussed purchase of a new skid steer for the recycling center, but will wait to see about grant possibilities through the Nebraska Recycling Council. Successful applicants can receive grants up to $20,000, but they must purchase the unit after the grant is awarded.
    The SWA had leased a skid steer previously. That lease is up in May, according to Supt. Davison.
    For both pieces of equipment, the council looked at lease options, too, but felt it was a better fiscal decision to buy them.
    In a related area, a resolution was adopted, concerning the closure and post-closure fund specifically for the C & D site at the transfer station. The new resolution is required since the SWA name as operator is being changed to the city of Imperial.
    City Administrator Jo Leyland said when the C & D site was built, the NE Dept. of Environmental Quality required that a post-closure fund be established and contributed to annually.
    Leyland said there is about $30,000 in that fund. The city is in the process of gaining new permits for the transfer station and C & D site under the new city of Imperial name.

More on street paving
    A story last week described a pair of concrete paving projects in southeast areas of Imperial slated for late summer.
    The plans include concrete paving of two blocks on Holland Street, from Cape Street north to 3rd Street (including the 3rd St. intersection), and the paving of 2nd Street from Orsa Street east to Highway 61.
    Bids on the projects will be opened April 14 in Kearney, and contractors have the choice of bidding each project separately, or giving a combined bid with both streets.
    City Administrator Jo Leyland said the street department has “quite a bit of cash” on hand, and depending on the bids, the city may use those street funds versus bonding the work.
    There are no assessments to adjoining property owners for either street project, she said.
    It wouldn’t be an issue on Holland Street, she said, since this summer’s project would be repair/replace rather than new construction.  
    “On 2nd Street, we could assess, but the bulk of the property belongs to the city,” she added.
    She is checking to see if the city can use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for the 2nd Street work.