CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

Week ending October 30, 2009

City awarded Diesel Emission Reduction grant

The Central Maintenance Garage has been awarded grant funding from KDHE as part of the ARRA Summer 2009 Diesel Emission Reduction Competition. This funding is to be used for exhaust system retrofit of some of the City’s older diesel trucks. The $26,800 grant will be used to purchase and install diesel oxidation catalysts for sixteen city trucks. Four Parks and Recreation super duty flatbeds, four ambulances, four fire trucks, four Solid Waste trucks, and two Street Department dump trucks will receive the upgrades. The catalysts replace the muffler in the exhaust system. They use oxygen in the exhaust stream to convert carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide and breakdown hydrocarbons into water and carbon dioxide. See attached award letter from KDHE.

Public Works saves money on downtown light pole replacements

There are approximately fifty-one, 30 foot street lights in downtown. Staff inspected the condition of all the bases of the lights and identified twelve that needed to be replaced. Nine have been replaced to date. The cost of a single new light pole is $2,500, so the Public Works Department is recycling the existing poles by cutting off the deteriorated area and re-welding the base plate (see attached photos).

City and school officials developing sidewalk and school crossing plan

City engineering staff recently met with the USD 497 officials and discussed issues related to school crossings and Safe Routes to School. During the month of November and December of this year, city staff and appropriate USD staff are scheduled to meet with the principals and PTA members of all 14 elementary schools in Lawrence to receive input on these issues. Following the discussions with the principals and PTA members, staff will perform field inspection of the sites and collect field data as necessary. Based on the input from the respective school authorities and field data, a comprehensive plan will be developed outlining the need for sidewalks and school crossings at all 14 elementary schools. Estimated implementation cost will also be included in the comprehensive plan. It is anticipated that the comprehensive plan will be completed within the next several months, and will be presented to the City Commission in March of 2010.

Community Forum on Job Growth

The Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, League of Women Voters, Douglas County and City of Lawrence sponsored a Community Forum on Job Growth on Thursday, October 29 at Lawrence High School (see poster). The forum featured round table discussions on local job growth. Economic Development Coordinator/Planner Roger Zalneraitis prepared the attached presentation for the forum.