SIDNEY — Sidney City Council received the annual virtual capital tour of various city improvements Monday evening at the monthly workshop session.
The PowerPoint presentation was given by various members of city staff about several ongoing and upcoming projects with in the city.
Within Sidney Police Department’s report, Sidney Police Chief Will Balling revealed that 13 vehicles will soon include traffic citation printers, which features a card reader. Balling said the overall benefits of a printer in a police cruiser means better officer safety, shorter time at a traffic stop, more professional looking tickets, and that tickets will eventually be directly loaded to the state of Ohio (when approved). He said it will also save time and labor on data entry at the state level.
The total project cost, not including the software, was $15,600. The department received the software free of charge through a state grant in the amount of $12,400. The city’s cost was only $3,200.
Fire Chief Brad Jones discussed some ideas they have been working on with the architects for the master design plans for the third fire station. He also displayed a picture of the new fire ladder truck that is in the pre-build design phase. The Rosenbauer Quint will replace ladder truck 5 and is expected to be built and ready for use early in 2019. The department also recently received 38 sets of Scott self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) Air Paks, which firefighters use when responding to a fire. Jones said they are still determining which kind of diesel scrubbers to order, which removes engine exhaust from the department’s garage and works to help prevent cancer.
The update on the city’s streets and water projects was given by Engineering Manager Randy Magato. They include:
• 2018 paving and microsurfacing. Magato’s report showed approximately 12.22 miles of road is set to be paved this year, with only 1.65 miles micro-surfaced. The resurfacing project is set to begin this week. Streets scheduled to be microsurfaced are complete, Magoto said.
• Curb and gutter repairs will be completed ahead of the streets scheduled to be resurfaced, Magoto said. Approximately 27,100 linear feet of curb is being replaced and 207 ADA complaint handicap ramps will be installed.
• The sidewalk program is gearing up; property owners received notices and have until June 29 to complete repairs themselves.
• Improvements to Fair Road and Vandemark Road. The project includes widening, and adding turn lanes on Vandemark Road, to the south of Fair Road. Curbs and a sidewalk will also be added on the east side of Vandemark Road. A left turn lane on the westbound lane of Fair Road at Vandemark Road will be added, also. Sidewalks will be installed on both sides of Fair Road, from the Interstate 75 ramp to Vandemark Road. There will also be an upgrade of a mast-arm traffic signal to be installed at Fair Road and Vandemark Road. The project will begin during this spring or early summer.
• Court Street/state Route 47 improvements. The project will include the replacement of the existing guardrail with a 42-inch decorative, concrete median wall; the installation of a 10-foot wide bike path on the north side of the road; decorative fencing; an upgraded traffic signal at Court Street and Walnut Avenue; and new street lighting along the entire project length. The project is expected to begin in the spring of 2020 and should be completed in October 2020.
• Park Street Bridge replacement over CSX Railroad. Design is complete and bridge construction is set to begin in the spring of 2019.
• Fair Road Bridge replacement over CSX Railroad. The project includes the replacement of existing bridge deck, new lighting, curb ramp upgrades at Fair Road and Chase Avenue. It also will include an 8-foot-wide pedestrian walk along the south side, and a 5-foot-wide sidewalk on the north side. The design is complete and construction is set to begin in the spring of 2019.
Water improvements include the following:
• The 8-foot water main on Ruth Street from Wapakoneta Avenue will be replaced. Construction is set to begin in early May.
• The water main at Letitia Drive at Elizabeth Court has been replaced, with water services currently being transferred to the new main. The project is nearly complete.
Magoto said the city is in phase two of the wastewater treatment plant expansion. The improvements are for reliability and energy savings to maintain compliance with the city of Sidney’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) permit. The major items included in this phase are:
• Replacement of three older pumps at the influent pump station;
• Replacement of HVAC equipment;
• Replacement of sludge piping and the transfer pump;
• Expansion of the solids storage pad;
• Rebuild EQ basin pumps;
• Repair the concrete within the plant structures.
The 2018 stormwater improvements located downtown will be in alley ways and surrounding court square and will allow roof drains to be connected to reduce the number of drains dumping onto the ground, Magoto said. The project that is still in the design stage. Construction is expected to begin this fall.
The storm sewer along side of Sidney-Shelby County YMCA needs replaced, as it provides an outlet for the North Main Avenue detention basin. The design for the YMCA project is currently underway. Bidding and construction is expected to begin this year.
There are several sanitary sewer improvements in various design, bidding and/or the construction phases that are planned for 2018 at Chestnut Avenue at Doorley Place, Helen Court, and Gearhart Road. The improvement on Gearhart Road will serve the future animal shelter. It is being funded by Shelby County with the city’s engineering department overseeing construction to begin in few weeks.
The renovated Zenas King Bridge to be placed over Amos Lake in Tawawa Park is scheduled for completion in November 2019. The bridge will connect the Benjamin Trail to the trail system on the south side, Magoto said.
