Marthasville has hired a new legal counsel to help the city progress on a stalled sewer project. Washington attorney Mark Piontek was hired in a decision reached in a closed meeting Jan. 20. All four …
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Marthasville has hired a new legal counsel to help the city progress on a stalled sewer project.Washington attorney Mark Piontek was hired in a decision reached in a closed meeting Jan. 20. All four aldermen voted in favor of hiring Piontek, who also serves as city attorney for Washington and Augusta.He is a member of the Lewis Rice law firm which is based in St. Louis and has an office in Washington.Piontek will be paid $230 an hour, according to Mayor David Lange.The lawyer will be tasked with helping the city acquire easements so that the city can extend its line to discharge sewage into the Missouri River. The project should help the city control its effluent, including ammonia, limits.By discharging waste into the river, it should help keep the effluent limits within the city’s permitted level. The city’s ammonia limits have exceeded its operating limit.Lange said he was unhappy that no progress has been made on the project despite asking city attorney Jamis Kresyman for updates in recent months.The city has been working on the project since at least 2012.“I told the board I’m tired of not getting anything done,” he remarked. “We strictly hired Piontek to work on the sewer easements. All he needs to work on is this project.”Kresyman will continue to represent the city on other matters.City hires full-time public works employeeBrad Landwehr was named the city’s public works director and promoted to a salaried position, a decision that also was reached in the closed meeting Jan. 20.His annual salary will be $40,000. He will also receive one week of paid vacation and paid holidays.Landwehr is now the city’s highest-paid employee. The only other full-time employees in the city are Deputy City Clerk Lisa Irwin and Police Chief Eugene Jenkins.The hiring was approved by a 3-1 vote. Aldermen Pam Jensen was the lone board member to oppose the hiring.Landwehr had been an hourly employee for the past few months and was getting paid $14 an hour. He formerly worked as the public works director for six years in Gerald, according to the mayor.Marthasville
