Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Water tower getting painted; city is getting "gap power"

Getting a water tower painted topped discussion at the Prescott City Council meeting in December.

Prescott Mayor Howard Taylor said he had met with engineers and bidders, with the bids opened. This, he told the Council, will be the first time the water tank has been painted since it was first built. The painting is mandated by the Arkansas Department of Health.

Joe Elrod said the low bid was $213,777 from Lee Painting of Mayflower. Theyve done similar work before in a timely manner. They did an excellent job at Camp Robinson and I recommend the Council go ahead with the low bid.

Elrod said the painting is temperature related and work will begin in either February or early March, depending on the weather. The tank will get three coats inside and three outside, and, he added, shouldnt take long once work begins.

Perry Nelson, Prescott water superintendent, said the citys water system will have to be temporarily shut down when the painting starts. We depend on this tank for back washing the filters.

The tank has a 500,000 gallon capacity. The system, Nelson said, will drop from 700,000 gallons to 300,000 gallons and the filters cant be washed as quickly or with as much pressure. The filters are washed weekly at this time. It wont be an easy thing. Well have to keep watch on it.

According to Nelson, the city will use the old water tower and two tanks on the rural water system to provide water for residents while the painting is being done. Painting is part of maintenance, and its a costly item, but we want to keep it (the tank) in service as much as possible. Its never been painted in 20 years. It was inspected recently and found to be in good shape.

From there the Council voted to amend the citys budget. This is done annually, but occurred twice during 2005.

Carl Dalrymple, the citys accountant, said the biggest changes were in the electricity income and how much electricity was purchased. There was also a change in the budget for the Parks and Recreation Department with $3,000 added.

Taylor said the meetings of the budget committee showed the shortage in the park budget.

Parks Director Steve Crow was on hand to explain the situation. He said the department received $65,000 from the city during 2005, but health insurance went up in July by $3,000, so the department ended up $3,000 short. Overall, he added, the budget was the same as 2004, except for the insurance hike.

Larry Stockton, city manager, said the insurance is withheld quarterly and amounted to $680 per month.

Dalrymple told the Council the city gets its new insurance rates in July.

Crow pointed out this is reflected on the financial statement every three months and he didnt find out until October himself. I tried to come to the November meeting, but couldnt.

Taylor said the city is still working on an electric contract and hopes to get the gap power rate resolved by Jan. 10, 2006 so the city can finish its budget for 2006 by February.

The city, he said, will have power supplied by Entergy for 90 days starting Jan. 1, 2006. This gap power will reflect the projected 18 percent increase from the Arkansas Electric Cooperative the city is contracted with for the next three years, but doesnt include fuel adjustments.

Mary Godwin, executive director of the Prescott-Nevada County Chamber of Commerce, updated the Council on the Chambers recent events.

She said Prescott has been highlighted in the monthly newsletter from the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism for its beautification efforts and getting the town cleaned up. This, she said, has a direct effect on economic development.

Except for maintenance, all other project have been completed for the year, finishing up with Breakfast with Santa. The Christmas parade and Christmas on the Square were the coldest ever, with the parade having fewer, but better entries. Entertainment at Christmas on the Square was cut back because of the cold.

Brian Russell, the new chief of the Prescott Police Department, told of two new hires to the department. Robert Henniger will be going to the academy in Camden, while Ronnie Wreyford comes to the PPD from the Hempstead County Sheriffs Office.