LaFayette City Council discusses water line at work session
BY KADIE TAYLOR
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
LAFAYETTE —LaFayette City Council members and Mayor Kenneth Vines met for a work session on Feb. 6 to discuss the Highway 431 Water Line Replacement Project, how to proceed with items previously declared as surplus and the possibility of an emergency notification system.
Harmon Engineering and Contracting Vice President Austin Harmon shared an update on the water line replacement and included information from discussions he had with ALDOT.
“The first step we took in working on this project was — we got in touch with ALDOT about their 431 Pavement Project that stemmed all this,” he said. “That project actually bid last week. We had discussions with ALDOT and ADECA about this project and us wanting to move the water line. Everyone is in favor of this project moving forward and getting the water line out from under the asphalt, and ALDOT is willing to hold off on accepting this bid until 2027, as long as the city is willing to commit to funding the project, above the grant money options that are available — that’s the way it was put to us. So, talking to ADECA and them talking to ALDOT in connection — ALDOT is willing to move as long as the city is willing to make what they called a ‘strong commitment to this.’”
The council members discussed different options for grants and the urgency of the project. District A Council Member Emily Milford raised concerns over the possibility of ALDOT machinery damaging the waterline if it is not replaced before the ALDOT project.
“If they come in and they tear [the concrete] up and they start bringing that heavy machinery on it, what are we going to be looking at — from an engineering perspective — are those lines going to be able to sustain that heavy machinery and that new paving?” she said. “Are we going to have to do this regardless?”
“The line is a risk,” Harmon said. “Would it survive the equipment that comes and goes and the truck traffic? In my personal opinion, I think it would, but it’s been there a really long time, and there’s no guarantee in any of that.”
City Attorney Joseph Tucker said he thinks that updating the waterline before the ALDOT project could help enable growth within LaFayette.
“Even though it won’t directly affect the industrial park, it’s a main that feeds the entire northern part of town,” he said. “It’s not like it’s just serving the people down [Highway] 431, it’s going to serve a substantial part of the town. But also any new industry, or anybody else willing to come in, is going to see this commitment — and this project shows that the city is truly working on getting the infrastructure in order… So this project would assist with every step going forward. [It would show that] the city is trying to put in the foundation that we need to do the next projects to get the next grant, to get everything — it would be a feather in the cap every time you go to apply for the next thing.”
Regarding how to proceed with the items declared surplus, the council discussed having a surplus bid or auction, then finding the best way to dispose of the remaining items.
District D City Council Member Charlene Story presented options for an emergency notification system.
“I feel like this is the best option to move forward in the city, so that way people can see that we can communicate with them,” she said. “If you have an issue, everyone gets a notification at once. It’s not where, it’s word of mouth. We don’t have the people relying on Facebook to get the information — they can all get it at once. Like, when we have a no-burn order, we can send that out. Or if we have a water outage, we can send that out.”
Some council members agreed that the emergency notification system could help with communication with constituents, but shared concerns over including it in the budget, as well as the difficulty of acquiring up-to-date contact information and ensuring the participation of senior members of the community. District B Council Member Kim Langley said that after the budget is completed in the next two weeks, the idea could be revisited.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Langley said. “My issue is with two things — one, I’m concerned that people actually use it — and the other one is, my feet are on fire because I can’t come up with a raise for these employees, and I’m leery to spend anything until we get that handled. That’s my dilemma.”
