Depot likely to

come down as street work looms in distant future

“The City did not send a tornado through,” Mayor Al Haas said for the record April 4. “We’re helping as much as we can.” That notwithstand- ing and with official word still out, there was bad news from the Monday April 4 Council meeting: the 1906 railroad depot damaged in the December 15 tornado, is likely to come down, sooner rather than later. While nothing has been heard by the city from the railroad (which must sign off on anything, as the depot stands in its right-of-way), the hazard posed by the current state of the building and an inspection by a mason point to one likely outcome: demolition.

“His fear was that once the roof was taken off, the rest would come down,” Ward 1 alderman Mark Fitzsimmons said of the mason’s appraisal of the building made in Craftsman style back in 1906. With an estimate of brick work “easily” reaching $250,000 for repairs, the prospect of a pavilion type building to replace it was brought up COUNCIL NEWS

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at Monday Council, though at present the city is still waiting on insurance.

No disaster funds for a possible repair were received from FEMA, on account that total damage from the tornado citywide didn’t meet the threshold for federal help.

Also brought up at the Monday April 4 Council meeting, meanwhile, was a pay raise for seasonal city workers, the final figure set tled on being $14 an hour after a motion by Kevin Hendrickson to raise seasonal worker’s wages to $15 an hour died for lack of a second. The raise to $14 an hour represents a $2 jump over the previous rate of $12 an hour, with such workers allowed 600 hours over the season with 28 hours each week.

Greg Steinke, who works year round at public works, has a 1,200-hour allowance.

Motion was made by Fitzsimmons and seconded by Holly Kitchell to raise seasonal wages to $14, with three such workers needed for public works and one for the sewer department.

In other council news city clerk Nicole Thiel

Agricultural/Farming Services

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Being approved since then, Stanley voters can expect to head on over to the Community Center in Chapman Park rather than the Fire Hall when they cast their ballots this fall.

A citywide cleanup will take place April 23 as follow up to that done directly after the December 15 tornado, residents had been being notified on the city website, newspaper, and in their water bill.

In the meantime, there needs to be a plan and some funding, if any chance remains for the depot to be saved. Should the depot ultimately come down instead, it is planned to save some materials for a memorial.

Mentioned briefly at the Council meet ing was a request by Ward 1 alderman Rick Hodowanic that the City take a look at the developer’s agreement with Halterman’s as he felt the vehicle situation was potentially getting out of control. The Haltermans earlier purchased land from the city north of Don Smith’s extending from the south side of Fifth Avenue north on the west side of the road.

Last but not least, Ayres Associates representative Lisa Sanders stopped by earlier this year to inform the Council that an income survey had been submitted for work and was good for three years, but that due to it being submitted being late there would be no road construction this summer. Road work, when it comes, will relate to Second Avenue and part of Emery.