By Tim Schmidt Record Managing Editor The city of Warrenton has completed the purchase of 20 acres adjoining its wastewater treatment facility on Willow Road. Mayor Jerry Dyer said the city and the previous property owners were able to close on the transaction earlier this month. The city paid $200,000 for the land, which consisted of two tracts of 16.44 acres and 3.27 acres. The property will allow for extra room as the city prepares to expand and upgrade the treatment plant, and will lead to net savings in the process. The sellers of the property were Brad and Laura Seger and Bobby and Amy Heggemann. The city was approached to see if it was interested in purchasing the property, Dyer previously said. City officials then decided to have its engineering firm look at the land, which recommended proceeding with the purchase. A public hearing was held Tuesday night on annexing the larger piece of property. No comments were made. At the previous meeting, the board voted 6-0 to authorize the mayor to sign a petition requesting the annexation. The purchase coincides with the start of a $15.5 million project to expand and upgrade the city’s sewer system. A bond measure was overwhelmingly approved by voters in the April 8 election. The sewer project is needed to adequately transport waste to the treatment facility and for the waste to be effectively treated at the plant. Some of the planned improvements include the installation of larger sewer mains parallel to the existing sewer mains, replacement of the Water Street lift station and equipment upgrades at the treatment plant. The project will be completed in phases, with the first phase starting immediately. The opening phase will cost $9 million of the overall $15.5 million project. In other news • Also at the June 3 meeting, the board voted 6-0 to award a bid for manhole repairs and pipe rehab to Spectra Tech LLC, of Noblesville, Ind. The winning bid will cover repairs up to $100,000. It was the lowest of four bids received. Other bids were submitted by Utility Solutions, Sasehor, Kan. ($107,937.50), Bates Utility Company, Weldon Spring ($114,750) and Ace Pipe Cleaning, Kansas City ($123,375). • Aldermen agreed to three requests to spend a total of $20,069 from the tourism budget. The city will be reimbursed $15,785 to cover half of the event coordinator salary. The other requests approved were from the Warren County Farmer’s Market for $134.40 and from Gametime Tournaments for $4,150. Both requests are for advertising. • The city renewed its life insurance policy with Anthem and chose Delta Dental as its new dental insurance provider. The life insurance will cost the city $5,335.20, an increase of $266.76 from a year ago. The dental insurance will cost $30,736.32 for the year, a 3-percent increase over last year. • The police department will have a firing range to call home. The board voted 6-0 to construct a firing range located near the city’s wastewater treatment plant on Willow Road. The estimated cost is around $4,246.25, not including warning signs. The city had budgeted $5,000 for the project. • The board awarded a bid to GT Distributors, Inc., Austin, Texas, to purchase new handguns for $3,000. The purchase includes trading in 25 handguns. Other bids were submitted by Glock, Inc., Smyrna, Ga. ($3,272) and Kiesler’s Police Supply, Jeffersonville, Ind. ($9,407). • Aldermen voted 6-0 to renew the 2014-2015 liquor license applications. • Roxann Higgins asked the board for help in improving the appearance of a property located at Country Lane No. 2. City officials said there currently are two nuisance violations pending against the property.
City completes purchase of Willow Road property
