Sewer line issues continue to haunt south county town

ARBYRD, Mo. -- The city of Arbyrd will be discussing options with the city attorney in completing work on the issues with the sewer line at 322 Frisco, following the city council meeting on Thursday.

The city currently has three options in dealing with the sewer line.

The first option is to do nothing, and not fix the problem. This option will cost the city nothing, but will not change the bad standing with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) the city currently has over the issue.

The second option is to correct the problem completely, which will see the city place pumps at each residence along the 150 foot sewer line and increase the homeowners electricity bill. This option would be the most expensive to the city.

The third option would have the city replace the 150 foot line with an eight inch PVC sewer line and place a lamp hole at the end of the line for proper clean out. This plan will cost the city $4,500 for materials and $1,500 for DNR to inspect the completed work, according to officials.

The issues are caused by the elevation of the land that the residence sits on, according to Mayor Lonnie Gibson, Jr.

"The pipe would have to sit level with the ground or above the ground for gravity to help the sewer system," Gibson said.

When the residence was put in, the elevation was shot and the city allowed the owners to have a cesspool, Gibson added.

The current issues with the sewer system stem from DNR informing the city that the waste from the residence was not being properly managed.

The city council voted to table the situation in order to discuss the options with the city attorney.

The owner of the burnt house on Broadway Street has still not signed the residence over to the city, or responded to the fines that the city has issued.

This individual has informed the city that he is giving it the property, according to City Clerk Erma Branum.

Two more tickets were recently issued, along with a warrant for the individual with the city paying extradition.

The individual has signed the deed over to the city, but was married at the time the house was purchased and his wife of the time is still listed on the deed. The two are now divorced, but the record does not show this, according Branum.

The owner of the house needs to correct the record on the status of his divorce, or sign a new document over to the city of Arbyrd with his ex-wife's signature, Branum noted.

The city will continue to pursue the individual and will be visiting him within the next two weeks, according to Gibson.

The new basketball goal for the park has recently been delivered to the city, according to Alderman Jessica Zolman.

"After all the ice storm clean up, we are going to find a place to put the goal in the park," Zolman said.

Also during the meeting, Gibson updated the council on the status of grants for the city. The COPS grant has been submitted and the three-year salary was determined to total $78,918, which will be covered 100 percent by the grant.

The city will also be applying for equipment through the FEMA Firefighters grant, per a decision by the council. The council members decided to apply for a grant for equipment instead of applying for a new truck.

"Every time we have put in for equipment, we have gotten it," Gibson said. "We have applied for the truck several times and not gotten it."

The Water and Sewer Department has been using two pumps belonging to Gibson for over the course of the year. The pumps are cast aluminum and used on Gibson's farm to hydrate watermelons, according to Gibson.

The pumps were borrowed approximately one year ago and have been used to pump the sewer system 12 hours per day.

Alderman Johnny Zolman motioned the city to buy two new pumps for Gibson to replace the two the city will continue to use. This motion was approved by the city council with the total of $535 for the two new pumps.

Gibson noted that he was more concerned that the need for trash pumps was never brought to the city's attention over the course of the year.

Gibson took the opportunity, during the meeting, to present exiting Alderman Johnny Zolman with a certificate of appreciation on behalf of the city of Arbyrd for years of service to the city.

In other matters of the council:

* The city will search for a grant to purchase a digital camera and recorder for the Police Department;

* The ditches in front of residence homes will receive repair once the debris is removed from the sites;

* Jerry Gentry has asked to be a reserve police officer for the city;

* The last day for storm clean up will be April 20, 2009;

* The city announced April 30, 2009, as Spring Cleanup;

* The weekend of May 9th will be used for the Citywide Yard Sale;

* Burning will resume of the debris collected from the storm and;

* South Ward Alderman, Brent Pierce, and North Ward Alderman, Ron Branum were sworn into office by Branum.