Durham City Council: Vandals damage restroom at city park
Contributing writer
Mayor Glennon Crowther informed Durham City Council at the Aug. 2 meeting that vandals had broken the toilet bowl in one of the park restrooms. He and Mike Sorenson had replaced it at a cost of $149.11. He asked whether the city wanted to foot part of the bill or leave the Lions Club to bear the cost, since the park is a Lions project.
Verlin Sommerfeld moved to pay $75 of the bill. Steve Miller seconded the motion, which carried unanimously.
Joyce Medley, city clerk, had noticed the new stool already had a crack, but the damage did not appear to be vandalism. "Would there be any use in trying to get that replaced under warranty?" Gary Unruh asked. "I don't think it could hurt to ask."
The mayor reported that he had removed some barrels of trash from behind the community building and asked Stutzman Refuse Disposal, Inc. to put a container there. The council approved his action.
Crowther had learned that millings are available at $7.50 per ton and suggested getting some to use for mending potholes in the city's streets.
"That looks pretty dry," Unruh remarked. "Is there anything we could mix with it to make it stick better?" The council reached no conclusion on that point, although some thought adding oil could help. The consensus was the millings would pack and hold in the deeper holes.
Unruh moved to get a load or two of the millings and stockpile it. Sorenson seconded the motion, which carried.
"We need to mow the sewer pond," said Crowther. "I didn't want to go out there alone for fear I'd get stuck, and I don't think anyone else should either. Is there anyone with an hour to spare to go out there with me?" Sorenson volunteered to help.
Verlin Sommerfeld was uncertain about the efficiency of the water system last month. "If we figure by what the meters showed, our loss was five percent, but I know it was more than that," he said. "I think one meter was bad. I replaced it. If we estimate water use based on what the new meter showed, our loss would be about 17 percent. I think that's about right." The lift pumps ran 44 hours.
For some unknown reason water pressure increased greatly after a fuse was replaced. Sommerfeld and the council speculated on whether this could pose a serious problem. Recent tests for lead and copper had shown them to be within acceptable limits.
A communication had been received from John Steele of the Kansas Rural Water Association. He will come out once each quarter to check the water system until there are three straight quarters with a loss under 20 percent.
The clerk had received a communication from Cardie Oil Company, the city's propane supplier, offering to lock in the price for the winter's fuel supply at $1.28 9/10. The council approved that arrangement.
There was some discussion about the need to clear out culverts, particularly those near the car wash. Unruh commented he thought most of the city's culverts needed to be cleared of debris. The consensus was that flushing the culverts with a fire hose might be more effective after a rain than during dry weather.
Among the bills approved for payment were $1,200 to Dalke Construction and $1,044.84 to Stutzman for the cleanup of the lots formerly occupied by Debbie Grayson. The mayor told the council the title to the car at the condemned property had been found, and the car had been removed.
The city's budget hearing is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Monday.
