The Levelland City Council held a regular meeting June 19, which addressed a broken water well in the city cemetery and approval of two encroachment agreements.
Director of Parks and Cemetery Dustin Riechelt discussed an issue that occurred with the central cemetery water well, causing it to stop water production.
After many days of troubleshooting and analysis, it was determined the well was beyond repair and a new well was needed. It was determined as the best option moving forward.
Reichelt explained the well was constructed in 1962, then refurbished in the early 2000’s, so a newly drilled well would last the city for a long period of time. The cost of the project was an estimated $43,000 which included drilling, the required pump.
The single bid came in from Submersible Pump Specialists in Levelland and would see the new well plugging in directly to infrastructure already in place. Riechelt stressed the water well was vital to keeping the cemetery looking nice and well-kept, but irrigation would not be able to occur until construction was complete.
Council suggested seeking additional companies who could potentially handle the job, but unanimously approved the expense to keep the ball rolling to not prolong the cemetery drying out any further.
Reichelt also made the announcement that community members can use water located at the cemetery from an existing tap located on the premises in the mean time to aid in keeping flowers and such watered.
Chief Building Inspector Joe Shedd was present at the meeting to explain that Code Enforcement Officer Eli Colunga was approached by the owner of a home located at 410 Holly St about extending their fence on the property when it was discovered that a sewer main ran beneath the plot.
This sewer main crossed over, passing through the property at 419 Holly as well, and both property owners had fences or outbuildings that encroached upon the required 10 foot easement for city maintenance.
The city approached both parties with encroachment agreements that would allow the city to access the sewer mains should the need for maintenance or repair occur. Both agreements were approved unanimously by the council.
Another action item on the council’s list was extending their agreement with City Bank for an additional year.
Four years ago, the city surveyed their banking options for institutions to facilitate their accounts, and City Bank was deemed the best choice.
At that time, the city entered into a two-year contract with three being optional in a one-year extension.
With the city currently without a Finance Director after the departure of CFO Sarah Osburn, City Manager Brandon Anderson recommended the council approve the one year extension to the depository contract.
Wrapping up the meeting, the council discussed a date to hear a Parkhill presentation regarding the progress of the new waste water treatment facility. The presentation was added to the agenda of a future meeting before the council moved into executive session to discuss the positions of city manager and finance director with no action to follow.