The Goessel City Council revisited the topic of sludge in wastewater lagoons during its Feb. 16 meeting.
Karen Dalke, public works director, told the council that someone from Kan?sas Rural Water Association would meet with her and offer advice about the sludge situation.
Dalke had been told by KRWA that 12 to 20 inches of sludge is common, even in sewage ponds that are only 2 years old.
City Clerk Jennifer White?head said the city is keeping Kansas Department of Health and Environment updated about the situation.
The sludge was at 25 percent in 2003; now it is 23 percent.
Dalke said the sewage ponds are ?getting ready to turn over.? She said ?suspended solids? is a separate issue from sludge.
Dalke said the 1981 sewer drawings don’t have all the information marked, and the engineering firm Schwab Eaton, who did engineering work for the city in 2004, is no longer in business.
The city will look into the sludge issue further.
Citycode presentation
The council listened to Larry Kleeman and Don Osenbaugh of Citycode Financial from Wichita.
Citycode organizes city ordinances by topic so all ordinances that have been passed by a city can be found easily by listing them according to chapters.
Citycode makes city ordinances accessible on the Internet so residents have easy access to them. New ordinances can be emailed to Citycode, and updates can be on line within 48 hours.
Citycode can research a city’s ordinances for inconsistencies or obsolete provisions. A Citycode attorney consults with the city?s attorney and governing body upon request.
Dalke and Whitehead said they have found it ?real helpful? to research the ordinances of other cities that make use of Citycode.
Kleeman gave the council a list of 61 cities in Kansas that use the service, including Galva, Hillsboro, Inman, Marion, Moundridge and Newton.
Whitehead said Citycode could help the city keep codes current; they know if laws have changed. She said the League of Municipalities does not offer the same service Citycode does.
Mayor Dave Schrag said, ?I think we could really benefit from this.?
The information given to the city includes a detailed list of services that Citycode would provide. The council decided to table the matter for a month while they study the information presented to them and look at the websites of other cities that use the service.
Other business
In other business, the council:
? affirmed Tim Young as a local police officer.
?I really enjoy the people of the town,? Young said. He has helped in Goessel with Threshing Days and the Bike Across Kansas event.
? heard that sewer lines had been cleaned. The lines in the creek area had ?a lot of roots,? according to Dalke, and it was good to get that cleaned out.
? heard about issues with city equipment. Estimates for fixing the city?s 2004 truck ranged from $6,000 to $18,000. It would involve 26 to 40 hours of labor. Asked if the city could replace it for $6,000, the answer was no.
The council agreed to get the truck fixed. The snow plow and a strobe light are attached to it.
?When you see me driving it, we have a problem,? Dalke said.
? voted to accept the city?s Disaster Response Plan Update and the Emergency Preparedness Plan Update. The two plans were not changed, other than replacing the names of former council members and with the names of new ones.
? voted to accept the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles waiver resolution.
? discussed buying a mosquito fogger that could slide into the bed of the truck, which would be better than the fogger that is attached to the tractor. No decision was made. The council will look into the matter further.
