The Village of Industry has decided on a contractor to install its new water meters. At its June 5th meeting, the board of trustees agreed to hire MB Construction of Monticello, Mo., for the work at a cost of $85,433.
MB Construction was the low bidder, coming in just below the $88,589 bid by Meyer Excavating of La Grange, Mo. The other two bids were from Illinois-based companies, Damon’s Plumbing of Pittsfield and Advanced Plumbing & Mechanical of Monmouth, for $120,310 and $186,510, respectively.
MB Construction will install Badger water meters the board already has agreed to buy from Midwest Meter for $92,255. The meter-replacement project wasn’t on the village’s list of planned upgrades to its water system, but the current meters have been failing and forced the village into triage mode.
Doug Erickson of Benton Engineering serves as project engineer for the village’s various infrastructure projects that are underway. He told the board that construction of the new water tower is on track to be completed later this year.
The contractor for the water tower, Caldwell Tanks, has proposed giving the village a $25,000 discount on the total project cost if no containment measures are used when the contractor paints the water tower this summer. Following Erickson’s recommendation, the board voted unanimously to accept the proposal and discount, which will make Caldwell Tanks responsible for any paint overspray or drifting that might affect neighboring properties and vehicles. There are three houses just west of the new water tower—one approximately 150 feet away.
“I’m not saying there’s going to be no risk of paint blowing and getting on somebody,” Erickson said, but added he considers the amount of risk to be very small.
MAEDCO addresses the board Kim Pierce, president and CEO of the Macomb Area Economic Development Corporation (MAEDCO) gave a presentation on what her organization does and how it affects Industry specifically. The village has donated money to MAEDCO, but at the board’s April meeting, there were questions about whether those contributions have proven worthwhile, with the village treasurer describing it as “paying for a dead horse.”
Pierce, who acknowledged she was aware of the criticism, brought along several bar charts with statistics. She said Industry has 26 residents who work in manufacturing at plants in McDonough County: 15 at NTN-Bower, 10 at Pella and one at Marshalltown.
She also talked about the wind farm that is planned for the Industry area and how housing will be needed for construction workers on that project. “It’s going to start to get busier over here,” she said.
And she addressed the possibility of a Dollar General Market grocery store in Industry. A discussion during the April meeting had touched on whether MAEDCO ought to help secure one for Industry. Pierce said that although the grocery store could happen and she would make some calls, there aren’t any guarantees.
Construction of a Dollar General storefront can cost $700,000 to $800,000, she said, and Dollar General then rents the space from an investor who owns the building and land. She recommended trustees start thinking about where a store might be located if Industry has a chance to secure one.
Finally, she mentioned Macomb’s ongoing discussions about possibly building a sports complex. She said a project of that size could have a “halo effect” and lead to other economic benefits for the community. But if the project requires an increase in property taxes, it stands no chance of getting off the ground, she told trustees.
Discussion about land next to windmill Chuck Bainter, who owns land just north of the town’s historic windmill, told the board he is concerned about his property rights. Approximately a year ago, the village became the owner of the windmill and land immediately around it. Bainter said he considers all of the pasture ground within the fence near the windmill to be his, but the pasture’s fence doesn’t follow the property line—some of it crosses over onto the village’s property.
Bainter is willing to pay for a new survey to redraw the line or establish an easement so that he has full access to his pasture. He said he thought all this had been sorted out years ago, but no one was able to find the paperwork, which apparently wasn’t recorded at the courthouse.
The discussion with Bainter will continue at next month’s meeting. The village attorney, Erin Wilson Laegeler, told trustees she suggests they take Bainter up on his offer to pay for a survey and then grant him an easement if needed. She doesn’t think fighting the issue is worth the trouble.
Appropriates ordinance passed
Trustees unanimously passed the village’s appropriations ordinance for the fiscal year that began May 1st and ends next April. The village concluded the last fiscal year with $1,310,650.64 in its treasury. $204,038.33 of the total sits in the sewer fund, and much of it will be withdrawn to pay for the new water meters.
