Water, Vehicle Bids and Man Camp Moratorium up for Discussion Tuesday

SAISD water usage, the man camp moratorium and a bid for City vehicles are on the books for Tuesday’s City Council meeting, with a heavy consent agenda and a few items up for public comment and discussion. The Council will also consider selecting a company to evaluate waste and potable water reuse options and benefits.

Bid for trucks

The City’s Vehicle Maintenance Division has called for bids on light-duty vehicles to expand the City fleet and replace old cars that are past their operational life. Having received the proposals, Council will consider awarding the one-year bid to Jim Bass Ford, with a cap of $150,000 on purchases within the year of ¼ ton to 2-ton utility vehicles. The bid may be renewed for two additional years upon Council approval, and purchases in excess of the $150,000 cap will also require the approval of City Council.

Council considers awarding the bid on the basis of financial impact; completeness of the bid; inclusion and pricing of items and options requested; the competence of the vendor regarding the purchase transaction; and the after-sale benefits including location of warranty shops, parts supply lead-time and availability, etc., a City memo states.

SAISD Water Usage

Following an agreement to permit the San Angelo Independent School District to use an additional 960,000 gallons of water at the Nov. 20 City Council meeting for the seeding of winter rye on four school baseball and softball fields, Councilman Rodney Fleming has called for an update, discussion and possible action on the school’s water usage.

SAISD Maintenance Director Jim Elson initially brought the proposal to Council on Nov. 9, requesting that the City allow him to use the 960,000 gallons over a four-week period, and offered in exchange to cut the district’s water usage by 5 million gallons. Should Council not comply, Elson stated he’d continue to use all of the 5 million gallons as previously.

Fleming was not in favor of granting approval, calling Elson’s negotiation method blackmail and stating that if he could save the 5 million gallons he should be doing it anyway. Fleming further stated that according to the City’s water use records for the SAISD, 5 million gallons was the total annual usage and would therefore be impossible to save unless water fountains, toilets, sinks and irrigation—in other words, all water dispensers in the schools—were completely cut off.

In a previous interview, Fleming said he would be bringing the issue back to Council to monitor the proposed water savings.

Reclaimed Water Alternatives Evaluation Project

The City of San Angelo has called for a study to evaluate the benefits of the reuse of non-potable and potable water citywide. Non-potable water is unfit for drinking, but is used for irrigation in the city, while potable water is treated drinking water.

Qualification packages and proposals have been received from five engineering firms to furnish reclaimed water (treated wastewater) alternatives to include a reclaimed water distribution system to meet non-potable demands and/or improvements to the Wastewater and Water Treatment Plants to be able to implement potable re-use, a City memo states.

The City has heard presentations from three firms, and based on these presentations and experience, staff have selected Alan Plummer Associates, Inc. as the best choice for the project.

Council Tuesday will consider selecting the company to evaluate water reuse alternatives by means of a study funded through the Wastewater Capital Improvements budget and the fee will be negotiated before being submitted for Council approval at a later date.

Alan Plummer Associates, Inc. will team with Enprotec/Hibbs & Todd and LBG-Guyton Associates to conduct the project. The major focal points of the study include an analysis of the benefits of direct non-potable and potable reuse; a summary of previous studies; current reuse practices; regulatory and policy updates; direct reuse opportunities and master plan level costs; potable reuse alternatives and master plan level costs; and a presentation to Council of the findings, a City memo states.

Man Camp Moratorium

A 90-day moratorium suspending development of parks for recreational vehicles, mobile homes, and manufactured homes will be discussed on Tuesday, along with an update presented by City staff.

The moratorium was discussed at the Nov. 19 and Dec. 3 City Council meetings last year, and was adopted on the latter date. The moratorium was put in place due to an inadequacy of existing ordinances that address these types of developments, a City memo states. Further, the memo states a need to review or amend current or to adopt new regulations for the preservation of public health, safety or welfare of the residents of the city, and the peace or order of the City of San Angelo.

The moratorium is effective until Feb 19, and over the 90-day period staff have been evaluating the needs of amendments and new ordinances to address the aforementioned concerns. Staff will update on their findings Tuesday, and request to extend the moratorium for an additional 90 days in order to allow staff time to present findings and amendment needs to the Planning Commission, as well as a lot time for council discussion before the moratorium is lifted.