The city of Medical Lake might receive some federal assistance in repairing its damaged streets.
During the April 18 City Council meeting, Mayor John Higgins informed council that staff might rent a paving truck to do some street patching.
“There’s a good chance we’ll get a $50,000 grant from the governor and whatever else we throw in,” Higgins said.
The grant Higgins referred to is the state Transportation Improvement Board’s “2017 Emergency Repair Program” grant. According to the TIB’s website, the grant was created in “recognition of state and local emergency proclamations regarding severe winter weather.” The program is limited to $5 million total with grants up to $50,000 for small cities under 5,000 in population, and urban cities with an assessed valuation of less than $2 billion.
At the April 4 council meeting, City Administrator Doug Ross said renting a truck would cost the city about $15,000 and staff would get about “a block’s worth of patching done.”
Higgins said the city’s maintenance department is still pumping out water. With the wastewater treatment plant loan being paid off at the end of the year, Higgins said he might come to council with a budget proposal regarding purchasing bigger pumps and lift stations in the near future.
In financial matters, Councilwoman Jessica Roberts asked when Abby Sanders would begin working with staff. Sanders, who is from the accounting firm of Petersen CPAS and Advisors out of Yakima, is working with the city to help reconcile the issues its having with the new and old accounting software systems, as well as the annual financial report.
Staff switched from Vision software to Tyler Technologies in 2016. Ross said Vision is single-entry software as opposed to Tyler, which is double-entry software. This caused problems with staff trying to track numbers from the old system.
Higgins said Sanders should be in the city “shortly” and that she has already been working with staff from her office in Yakima.
Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.
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