Bloomsdale Water Project Moving Along

By MARK EVANS

STE. GENEVIEVE HERALD

T.J. Garbs of Cochran Engineering reported that the erection of tower to hold Bloomsdale’s new 300,000-gallon water tank is “coming along pretty quickly” during the July 12 Bloomsdale Board of Aldermen meeting.

This is despite an injury to one of the crew members erecting it. Garbs said Cochran was looking into the incident.

Garbs believes the tank should be finished about Aug. 1.

Meanwhile, the water main is “largely in the ground,” he told city officials at the July 12 board of aldermen meeting. He also said he has heard nothing new about the brackets that will be added to the tank to hold 911 antennas.

Garbs also reported on the plans for the Clement Road portion of the water main project, which will be one of the later stages.

“We’re still kind of working through kinks,” he said. “Everything’s drawn, though. We’re just kind of working through to find the best right of way length.”

He said that is “kind of tricky situation” because the city’s right of way isn’t uniform all the way along the road.

He said crews are working to get ready to put the new water main through pressure testing.

The board approved a list of change orders in the contract. Garbs said they were a case of “a few things that popped up,” such as the actual location of the water main in a few locations.

“I went through it with our inspector and I went through it with Derek Drury and made sure all the numbers checked out,” Garbs said. He said John Lurk, water superintendent, also looked over the changes. There may also be some additional charges for rock breakage during the digging.

The changes also included some additional fittings.

RUZICKA VISITS THE MEETING

Randy Ruzicka, Second District commissioner and candidate for presiding commissioner, attended the meeting to introduce himself to the board. He emphasized that the county and individual cities within are “all in this together.”

While three, he was asked whether he is county flood plain manager. When he said he was, the issue of a piece of land in Bloomsdale, where a pile of dirt has been added in the flood plain, was brought up. He said he would check into it. Ruzicka’s visit took about half of the meeting.