Seventh St. payment on hold due to re-seeding

   While the Highway 38 resurfacing project carries on, Pirc-Tobin Construction, the contactor on the E. Seventh Street Utility Improvement Project is looking to wrap things up. However, AJ Barry, the city engineer with Snyder & Associates, feels otherwise.

   During the June 20 Monticello City Council meeting, Barry explained what remains of that project.

   The agenda included approval of the third pay request to Pirc-Tobin in the amount of $161,922.85.

   Barry said he is meeting with Pirc-Tobin on Thursday of this week to discuss some issues with quantities on specific items and “to rectify due to a disagreement on those item quantities.”

   In addition, the seeding on Seventh Street did not hold up. Barry said Pirc-Tobin is requesting payment on the seeding; however, payment will be made once the area has reached 70 percent vegetation, which it has not.

   “You should anticipate another pay request after we come to an agreement on quantities,” he warned the council.

   Mayor Dave Goedken asked about the erosion control on Seventh Street that is not staying put as the DOT works on the Highway 38 project.

   “Yes, it’s getting beat up and in rough shape,” admitted Barry, “but it’s still preventing run-off from getting into the storm system, so we recommend leaving it there longer until the seeding is figured out.”

   Barry said a final project pay request won’t come before the council until Snyder reviews all of the documents and recommends final approval.

   The council approved the third pay request.

   Barry also asked the council for direction on utilizing city staff to water the Seventh Street areas if Pirc-Tobin should come back and re-seed this fall.

   “The project will remain open until then,” he said of the final seeding.

   Goedken questioned why the initial seeding failed.

   “Hydroseeding usually performs really well,” commented Barry. “It comes down to a dry week following the seeding. That didn’t help with germination.”

   In terms of the 70 percent vegetation, Council member Tom Yeoman asked how that figure is determined.

   “It’s all visual,” said Barry. “It’s based on the area covered.”

   City Administrator Russ Farnum and the council felt that it wasn’t the city’s obligation to involve city staff in rectifying the seeding issues by watering the proposed areas.

   “It’s the contractor’s responsibility,” Farnum said.

   The council directed Barry to work with the contractor on re-seeding, giving them the option of starting in the fall.

In other city business:

   • The city received a request from Sacred Heart School staff and fifth-grade students to rename the roadway behind the visitors’ bleachers at the football field/track “Panther Valley.”

   The letter states renaming the east/west roadway “would be a safety addition to the city by allowing the police/EMS and school personnel to find the exact location in the case of an emergency by the football field.”

   Police Chief Britt Smith said he didn’t necessary fully object to the request.

   “It might help first responders,” he said, “who are not familiar with that area.”

   Right now, Dean Nelson Field does not have an address; however, the roadway in question is considered part of S. Maple Street.

   Council member Tom Yeoman wasn’t opposed, noting that there are no residences on that stretch of roadway who might be impacted by an address change. The council felt that the former school district office (now the Transition Center) would still have a S. Maple address. German Mutual Insurance has a S. Main address.

   The council will have the item on their July 5 agenda for formal action.