The Northwest Plant has been producing good, quality water.”

Jon Strand, CBS2

The next City of Stanley Council meeting is scheduled for January 6th at 7 PM.

Stanley City Hall
353 South Broadway St.
Stanley, WI 54768
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The Stanley Council convened for its final meeting of 2024 on Monday, December 23rd, just two days before Christmas. With Alderpersons Josh Seidl, Laurie Foster, and Jacob Huff absent, Jon Strand of CBS2 provided the Council with a year-end update on the progress of the Water Department. Strand shared that the Central Plant had a lot of chemical line replacements.
“There were some issues with some lines that were leaking. It was time for them to be replaced,” he explained. “That was a larger activity, during the last month at the Central Plant.” He added, “This last month went very well as far as production of water and quality of water from the Central Water plant.”
The Northwest Plant had a “few hiccups” with the filter unit exhibiting signs of needing to be cleaned. After taking down the north UTS tank some plugged nozzles were found that need to be replaced.
“It’s twenty-three years old so it’s at a point where those things do need to be replaced,” said Strand. He mentioned that a chemical line decided to break on its own. “That was a surprise for the weekend operator,” he commented adding that it was replaced.
“The Northwest Plant has been producing good, quality water,” Strand informed the Council, adding that Well #5 was still down and waiting for the stainless-steel lining that will be coming in January. “The freight company damaged the first liner,” he explained.
Strand announced that the older water meters currently stored at the Central Water Plant will be "off property" by December 31st and mentioned that another water utility has expressed interest in purchasing the meters.
“Really good news is it’s been, now knock on wood somewhere, but it’s been two weeks since we had a call out,” he said excitedly. He attributed this success to the recent changeover to the new SCADA system, which included programming adjustments that reduced some alarms, as well as the work on the North Water Tower. He explained that a device measuring the tower's water level had been giving inconsistent readings at different times, but it has since been replaced. “As far as I know the North Tower has been functioning quite well,” he said.
The Pinnacle ozone equipment has been successfully installed. Strand mentioned that while there was a water leak, a Pinnacle technician addressed the issue and didn’t find any damage to the equipment. The older OTI ozone equipment is still on-site, but the room is gradually being cleaned out.
“That room is being repurposed for an air receiver tank that will operate with the new ozone equipment which frees up two smaller air compressors that are squeezed into that room right now,” said Strand. The room will be redesigned to be more operator-friendly and to make better use of the available space. Because Pinnacle initially did not order a complete air system, they are covering the cost of the air receiver tank and the two smaller compressors that the city had to purchase during the initial setup. The old ozone equipment was purchased by the City of Abbotsford and the rest will be salvaged.
Ben Wald inquired about the newly implemented confined entry process, and Strand provided further details. The process ensures that no one enters a confined space alone; there must be an additional person present who is within sight and sound, along with a pre-established rescue plan.
“Thank you for that,” said Wald. “If you see anything else like that definitely address that.”
Meyer said, “We have an effort to reduce their workman’s comp claims and we certainly don’t want anybody injured but trying to keep the workman’s comp insurance premiums as low as possible.”
“Safety definitely has to be first priority in everything we do,” noted Wald.
The Central Plant's upcoming project involves replacing the outdated iron and manganese removal equipment, along with installing a new reverse osmosis softening system that will operate without using salt. Strand noted that the current chemical room is also outdated and will be replaced to meet modern codes for storage and ventilation.
“The idea is to add an addition on to the building,” Strand said. The best location for the addition is to add on to the north side of the building, connecting to the 2013 addition. “The existing building still has some life left in it,” he said. The new addition will include two garage doors for pickup truck storage and plans for a new bathroom.
Strand informed Meyer that the new central plant will be less complex than the Northwest plant, noting that one of the reasons is that the central plant doesn’t have high iron levels, allowing for smaller filters.
“That’s good to hear,” replied Meyer.
“Will it have a generator?” asked Mayor Mike Henke.
“We will incorporate an exterior generator to the Central Plant,” answered Strand. He also mentioned that the generator would provide power to both the central plant and Well #10, while also replacing the outdated generator at Well #3.
The Council approved the CBS2 Supplemental Agreement for professional services for engineering services for the Central Treatment Plant and Well #3 Rehabilitation Project for $983,400. Strand explained, “This is for all the engineering services for the Central Plant which includes both design survey and construction administration work.” Speaking on a timeline, Strand stated the desire to open bids by November 1, 2025 and to have the project producing water with the new equipment by December 2026.
The Stanley Council approved a proposal from Water Well Solutions for the pull and inspection of Well #3, with the cost not to exceed $10,660.00.
“It needs to have a thorough inspection and then probably some pump rehab work,” stated Strand. He added that the future project plans would replace the current building with a precast well house structure that would be of similar construction to all the other well houses for the City.
The Council also approved the proposal for geotechnical engineering services for soil borings at the Central Water Plant for $4750.00. The Mississippi Valley Archeology Center proposal for an archeology and history literature review for $350 was unanimously approved by the Council.
The Council then approved the Law Enforcement Agreement with the Village of Boyd for 2025.
“Everybody’s happy?” asked Alderperson Mark Fitzsimmons.
“Boyd’s approved it already,” Henke replied.
“I wish everybody a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,” Henke announced as the meeting adjourned. The next City of Stanley Council meeting is scheduled for January 6th at 7 PM.