By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
As city water and sewer lines age, Bowling Green is faced with sinking money in the ground to repair and replace old lines. The city is currently preparing for nearly $1 million in water and wastewater line improvements.
The city has identified several water and sewer mains that are aging, of inadequate size, or that require regular maintenance, according to Utilities Director Brian O’Connell. So on Monday evening, the Board of Public Utilities approved the city advertising for bids and entering into contracts for some of the work.
Already planned for in the 2017 budget, and first on the list to be fixed are the following:
- Water line on Manville Avenue, between Napoleon Road and Wooster Street for $376,000.
- Water line on Liberty Avenue, between Fairview Avenue and North Grove Street for $70,000.
- Manville sewer relining between Napoleon Road and Wooster Street for $364,000.
- Darlyn Drive sewer relining for $55,000.
The board of public utilities also approved advertising for bids for utility vehicles and equipment already approved in the 2017 budget. In some cases, existing vehicles will be traded or sold. And when possible, the city will use the State of Ohio Cooperative Purchasing Program and the Ohio Department of Transportation Purchasing Program to cut down on costs.
Following are the vehicles sought and the amount budgeted for them:
- Electric division bucket truck to replace 1995 truck, $250,000.
- Electric division equipment to replace substation transformer and upgrade the substation on Dunbridge Road, $1.1 million.
- Water distribution division replacement of service body, $64,500.
- Wastewater collection, new service truck with crane, $144,000.
- Water treatment division, replace two touch screens, $70,000.
- Water pollution control division, replace furnaces, fans and lighting, $70,000.
Also at Monday’s meeting, the board agreed to the hiring of a consultant to conduct a GIS joint use pole audit. Several electric poles in the city are used by companies such as Buckeye or Frontier, O’Connell explained. Currently, those firms are charged $4.09 per attachment per year, which generates between $30,000 and $35,000 for the city.
The information from the audit will be integrated into the GIS system to enable identification and location of city owned poles. It will also be used to help resolve pole ownership disputes and improve joint-use billing accuracy. In the past, companies have requested GIS data to verify the accuracy of the billing for pole attachments.
The audit will also help identify pole attachments that have been performed without city permission.
In other business, it was reported the city has experienced about eight water main breaks since the beginning of winter. That is not an uncommonly high number due to freezing and thawing conditions.
It was also reported that the wastewater plant had three sewer overflows in 2016, all during periods of above normal rainfalls.
