Sewer interceptor line needs repair, city commission learns

Holton’s water and sewer personnel are currently “babysitting” a problem with a sewer interceptor line that is “problematic” and will need to be repaired before cold weather sets in, but the Holton City Commission learned on Monday that a solution for repairing the line may not be simple.

During the commission’s regular meeting, City Manager Kerwin McKee said an interceptor line on the north side of the city has experienced a “failure” that requires sewage to be pumped “from one manhole over to another” using two pumps, creating an above-ground sewer line “bypass.” But while McKee said the “bypass” has been successful, an “emergency repair” is needed soon.

“I don’t know that we have time to get a set of prints drawn up, go out for bids and give contractors 30 days to bid, then hire a contractor to come in and do it, because we’re pumping across the top of the ground,” McKee said. “If it gets cold in a hurry and freezes, we’re not going to be able to pump.”

The temporary solution of “pumping across the top of the ground” was problematic for other reasons, he said. Twice a day, city sewer personnel have to clean screens that catch debris that is flushed down toilets, and McKee noted those screens have caught “women’s hosiery and all kinds of stuff” inside one of the manholes, which he estimated was “all of 10 feet deep.”

Also, the soil near the interceptor is “not good,” since it is “real sandy,” McKee said, adding that he did not “know anybody that will dig in it” and a directional bore may be necessary to unclog the interceptor line.

McKee later noted that on Tuesday, engineer Don Hellar of the Evans-Bierly-Hutchison and Associates (EBH) engineering firm of Great Bend, recommended a directional bore, as well as a contracting firm that would be willing to do the job. A representative from the firm is scheduled to meet with city officials later this week. 

Commissioners agreed with McKee’s “emergency repair” diagnosis, with Commissioner Dan Brenner adding that the repair has “got to be done.”

In other business on Monday, commissioners approved the designation of two new “no parking zones” in Holton. These new areas include the north side of Fifth Street between Colorado and Dakota avenues and the east side of the 400 block of Kansas Avenue.

The new zone on Fifth Street is located in front of the new Holton Elementary School. At that location, McKee said motorists are parking in an area near the intersection of Fifth and Colorado where the street “kind of jogs over,” causing a “congestion pile-up,” instead of going into the parking lot and dropping off children in designated drop-off and pick-up lanes.

McKee also noted that school officials have made efforts to solve the congestion issue by adding “more directional signage” in front of the school. Commissioner Mike Meerpohl added that the school’s efforts have apparently worked so far, as traffic congestion has been reduced somewhat in that area.

“I’ve heard from a few of the teachers and people who work up there that when they first got started, there really was a backup of cars,” Meerpohl said.

Congestion is also an issue in the 400 block of Kansas, where city trucks and snowplows have trouble navigating the street when cars are parked on both sides, particularly after snowfalls, McKee said. He suggested “no parking” signs be placed along the east side of that street, where only one house is located and the house’s owners tend to park in the alley behind it.

Meerpohl said that while the city “will get some complaints” for reducing parking in the 400 block of Kansas, the action was necessary because “that’s been kind of a congested area for years.” He also suggested that the city look into placing “emergency snow route” signs on the block.

Commissioners also:

* Noted the absence of Commissioner Tim Morris. In addition to Brenner and Meerpohl, commissioners present included Mayor Robert Dieckmann and Twila White.

* Approved minutes from the commission’s Sept. 19 meeting and budget appropriations made since that meeting.

* Approved the appointment of Jim Dodson to the Holton Housing Authority board of commissioners.

* Welcomed Jeff Draper as the city’s new codes enforcement officer. Draper has been a city employee since 2009, when he started as a police officer.

* Noted that concrete has been poured for the base and sidewalk at the Purple Heart monument in Linscott Park.

* Heard an inquiry from White about whether all of the city’s new storm warning sirens had been installed.

* Learned from McKee that Hellar’s planned visit to Monday’s meeting to discuss estimates for improvements at the city’s water treatment plant and the spillways at Elkhorn and Prairie lakes had been postponed, possibly until the Oct. 17 meeting, because Hellar is “having trouble getting hard numbers together for those projects.”

* Heard a comment from Meerpohl that the alley between Kansas and Iowa avenues in the 600 block is “real rough” and in need of repair following recent heavy rains.

* Heard a question from Brenner about whether the city is restricting heavy truck traffic on South Iowa Avenue north of Banner Road. Jackson County restricts such traffic on that road south of Banner, he said. McKee said the city has no truck traffic restrictions in that area.

* Adjourned the meeting at approximately 7:30 p.m.