McPHERSON, Kan. — The McPherson City Commission has approved additional testing and repair work to the water line that serves the water side, lazy river and splash pad at the McPherson Water Park, which were inoperable much of last season. The project will entail removal and replacement of the west recirculation piping north of an existing valve box with new Schedule 40 piping extending to the back of three wall inlets fed by that line. This will add $38,000 to what has already been paid to determine what the issue was, inclusive of labor, materials, concrete restoration and site cleanup at an added cost of up to $38,000, bringing the total cost of work to around $63,000
Commissioners approved a nearly $4,000 payment to File Savers Data Recovery to recover and restore data from a Police Department computer hard drive that sustained a catastrophic read-write head failure, which crashed onto the drive’s electromagnetic platters that store dash cam and other video recorded in 2023.
It approved letters of support connected with transportation grant applications to the Kansas Department of Transportation. This is through two separate grant programs and provides federally sourced funding for transportation services offered through the McPherson County Council on Aging by the McPherson Senior Center, MCDS, Disability Supports of the Great Plans along with funds for the city’s taxi voucher assistance program.
Commissioners approved submissions for payment on four homes rehabilitated through a Community Development block grant. It also approved a modification to the grant budget and authorized a contract with SCKEDD to write a grant application for an upcoming round of CDBG funding.
A change order was approved on the Myers Street reconstruction project increasing the contract cost by $30,000. This change added 250 square yards of eight-inch concrete at Myers and Loomis that was not included in the original plans.
Also approved was purchase of various lamps, lamp jackets, ballasts and other items for the UV Ultra Wipe system at the Wastewater Treatment Plant at a cost of up to $47,500. This system is what disinfects final effluent from the plant before discharge into Dry Turkey Creek and irrigation use at Turkey Creek Golf Course. Lamps and jackets were last changed out in early 2023 and are budgeted for replacement every two years, so the lifespan of what’s there now went longer than expected.
Commissioners approved two event requests, including one for a “No Kings” Rally Saturday morning at 11 at the Linnea Park Pavilion. This is one of a series of rallies taking place around the country protesting various actions of the Trump Administration. The other event request for the FUSE Foundation Fill the Boot Fundraiser Saturday, Oct. 25 from 8-noon at Main and Kansas. They will also collect donations at Walmart and Dillons.
Approval was given to a job description for an administrative assistant who will be assisting with crime intelligence and authorized the start of the hiring process for the position, accepted the resignation of a cemetery employee and authorized start of the hiring process, and approved a conditional job offer for a Street Department Operator in Training.
