Story by Rodger Nichols for Gorge Country Media
Any time you open up the underground in an older part of the city, you’re going to find problems. That was the case on the First Street Project. The main sewer line serving that area is 100 years old and made of clay. As part of the project, they will need to park a 44,000-pound piece of equipment right over the top of it. A $364,000 change order will reinforce the sewer line. A one staffer put it, “You can shut off a water main, but you can’t shut off a sewer. Fortunately, there are funds in the budget to cover that addition.
The biggest surprise of the night was the appearance of union members from SIEU, which is currently in negotiations with the city. Spokesperson Jordon Pesce (PEA-see) laid out an argument for a wage increase, in which he said in part:
“To recruit highly skilled workers and retain the ones we have, the city must offer compensation that is competitive. Average wage won’t cut it. We’re asking above average wages because we perform above average work, carrying out above average responsibilities.”
He did not identify a specific goal, but reminded the audience that the city manager and the city attorney both received 8.2 percent raises at the last council meeting. Following the meeting, one council member noted that just three years ago, the city had increased compensation for employees by a whopping 18 percent.
In other items, City Manger Matthew Klebes had news about the Weber Street crossing:
“The Weber street crossing temporarily open today through early Friday. It will then close on Friday for permanent striping, and then will re-open by end of day Friday the 26th. While Weber is temporarily open, they’ll be closing First Street to allow the final work on that section of the project.”
And he announced a new source of information available to the public
“A new web page that just went online today called “Seasonal Water Supply Monitoring.” This will detail a lot of significant city water information – a snapshot of conditions this month, last month and then the year before, so you can monitor temperature and water levels, and different wells that are in operation. Our intention here is to update this information on a monthly basis.”
And the council held an executive session on union negotiations, returning to open session only long enough to pass a vote to adjourn.