The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The Green St. pipe replacements are likely to go over budget, but city officials are quick to note that the project went beyond its original scope. In September 2012, city council budgeted $300,000 to replace the leaky water mains beneath Green St. between the Phelan Ave. and Elm Ave. intersections. 'It is very likely to go over the original $300,000 (budget),' Chief Administrative Officer Mark Kolt said at the Sept. 3 council meeting. 'But...it's not as if we were in a situation of catastrophic overruns as of Aug. 1 and there's little sign of catastrophic overruns at this point.' The city did not yet have an exact cost for the project. Coun. Bill Hanson noted that the project covered 40 feet and some extra valves over and above what was originally conceived. He said the extra work was necessary and illustrates the inherent difficulties in attempting to budget for a project. 'Somebody said to me, 'Well, what do you do if you go over budget and you need to change a valve?'' said Coun. Hanson. 'I said the same thing to council: What do we do, tell the people on Anderson (Ave.), 'Geez, you know, we didn't budget for that valve so you're not going to have sewer and water this year, but next year when we have more money, (you will).' I mean, it's a budgeting process. We're not magicians. When we open the ground up, I think we've done very, very well with the money we've had and the way it's been managed.' When council directed work on the piping replacements to begin in September 2012, they described the project as urgent. The city originally hoped to complete the project before snowfall last year, but when the weather threw a wrench in those plans, work ended for the winter and resumed earlier this year. The project was essentially completed weeks ago, though sodding to beautify a block of torn-up yards will be done next year.
