New council is sworn in

Tuesday, December 7, 2004

Two of McCook's three newest City Council members were elected to the offices of Mayor and Vice President during the regular meeting of the McCook City Council, Monday night.

Dennis Berry, who was elected to a two-year term, will serve as mayor and Bill Longnecker will serve as vice-president.

Aaron Kircher, Berry and Longnecker were officially sworn into office to begin the meeting.

During the consent agenda portion of the meeting, Greg Wolford of W Design and Tom Satchell of Jacobson Helgoth told the council the specifications for the equipment to be used at the city's water treatment facility have been modified to meet the approval of the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

The criteria for bidders includes an application that asks for specific experience in building water treatment equipment.

While the engineering firms have identified three manufacturing companies that meet the city's qualification, Wolford and Satchell assured the council they would accept bids from other qualified manufacturers.

"We just don't want a vendor that plans to learn water treatment in McCook," Wolford told the council.

The bids will be opened Jan. 7. There will be a special meeting at noon, Monday, Jan. 10 to allow the council to award the bid.

The council denied a request from Red Willow County Commissioner Leigh Hoyt to wave the fees for trash collected from county road ditches.

Hoyt's request to waive future fees and forgive a fee of $723 owed the McCook transfer station was denied. Councilman Jim Kenny said he was afraid if the city started forgiving fees for one group, it would set a precedent. Kenny suggested that Hoyt ask the city/county cooperation committee to look into a Illegal Dumpsite Cleanup Grant from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality.

The council also took no action on a request from Jemaly Investments L.L.C. that the city help them extend sewer service to their business location at 1204 West J.

Deb Wilcox told the council their business had experienced sewer backup and sewer odor for the past year because their sewer line is attached to a residence south of the church and has become disconnected from the sewer line.

Because the sewer connection is on the neighbor's property, the owners have been unable to repair the sewer line. Wilcox asked the council to provide the labor to extend the business' sewer line to the sewer main on J Street.

The council told the owners the city would be unable to help since the action would benefit only one consumer.

"It's out of our hands," Mayor Berry told the business owners. The cost of the improvement will lay exclusively with the owners of Jemaly Investments.

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