(Spirit Lake)– A rennovation of Spirit Lake’s water treatment plant should finish ahead of schedule and come in on budget. Mark Hardy with the Howard R. Green engineering firm out of Sioux City which is overseeing the project for the city told the city council Tuesday the contractor is expecting to wrap up work on the project by the end of March…well ahead of the original deadline of May 1st. Hardy added the 3.8 million dollar project is also coming in on budget.
The council also heard an update from the Dickinson County Trails Board. Yvonne Taylor represents the city on the board. She told the council some major fundraising events are being planned to help convert the former railroad right-of-way between Spirit Lake and Lake Park to a trail. And she reported the board has identified some potential long-range projects which include a trails in the Center Lake and Pioneer Beach areas.
The council also heard from Shaun Arneson of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation. He reported the economic development consortium is now certified to offer fast track courses. More information on them can be obtained by contacting the corridor.
The council was also updated on snow removal efforts in the city. City Administrator Mark Stevens says the city has spent 54-thousand dollars of the 64,500-dollars that had been budgeted for snow removal.
Public Works Director Dwight Dohlman says crews are working to improve visibility at busier intersections first, and will gradually make their way around to others. He says they’ll also be widening some sidestreets. However the city’s snow blower is currently in for repairs. Dohlman says it will be used to blow the huge piles into trucks that will then haul it to a snow dump site that’s been set up just east east of Fisherman’s Factory Outlet.
