NEWS
Nelson Street repairs may top $2 million
By BARBARA GREEN
[email protected]
The City of Bowie is like many other cities across the country dealing with aging infrastructure, recurring damage from natural disasters and a lack of funding to make all the repairs or improvements a community may need.
City officials are gathering cost information on the best option to repair the collapsed street and related ongoing flood damage on Nelson. The numbers are scary so far topping $2 million.
Renovation of the police department also has been put on hold for structural concerns which increased the cost and threw up a red flag from the architects for the 50-plus year building.
Nelson Street
On Aug. 21, following more than five inches of rainfall in the city, a section of Nelson Street caved in, prompting the street’s closure for safety concerns for any traffic going down the street.
The next day City Manager Bert Cunningham filed a disaster declaration anticipating the governor would proclaim a disaster for the Dallas area which experienced some of the worst rainstorms and flooding in its history. The state declaration came a few days later for 23 counties including Montague.
Usually, with a disaster declaration, a county or community becomes eligible for certain federal disaster relief programs.
Cunningham had hoped for that but as of Thursday, he said it doesn’t look like Dallas has come up with the necessary estimates. The magic number is $48 million in damage before an application can be made for federal disaster funds.
In the first week, engineers and building contractors were asked to examine the damage and offer estimates that the city staff could provide to the feds.
Thursday, Cunningham said the engineers are estimating $2 million to repair the drainage culverts under the street, along with the adjacent flow areas near the dropbox.
City of Bowie officials were on hand to inspect the emergency electrical generators that were delivered last week.
Mayor Gaylynn Burris and City Manager Bert Cunningham inspected one of three emergency electrical generators purchased as part of an ongoing Federal Emergency Management Agency Hazard Mitigation Grant. They also talked with Jay Evans, head of the city electric department, and Jerry Sutton, director of the water treatment plant about the next step for installation of the generators.
This grant provides funding for one 150 kW and two 250 kW generators for use at the water treatment plant.
Read the full story in the mid-week Bowie News.
City Manager Bert Cunningham and Mayor Gaylynn Burris talk with the electric and water department staff about the new generators. (Photo by Cindy Roller)
No action was taken on a legal issue after members of the Bowie City Council met in a called closed session at 4 p.m. on July 12.
City Secretary Sandy Page said the council met for almost one hour for “consultation with attorney – Midwest Waste Services LLC vs. City of Bowie.
This lawsuit goes back to August 2019 when Midwest sued the city for its action requiring those who receive city water outside the city limits to use the designated waste collector, which is Waste Connections. This was shortly after the city signed a new long-term contract with WC.
The suit was dismissed in June 2020 on two points in the suit, but City Manager Bert Cunningham said a third point remained in mediation.
The Department of Public Safety has provided information on an auto vs. motorcycle accident that reportedly occurred on July 4.
James Lee Hilton, Nocona, was driving a 2019 Harley-Davidson motorcycle and Daniel Parra, Chico, was driving a 2018 Ford Fiesta. Both vehicles were north on State Highway 101 outside Sunset with the motorcycle behind the car.
Parra was attempting to turn left on Farm-to-Market Road 2265 when the motorcyclist attempted to unsafely pass to the left states the report. The bike struck the left side of the Fiesta. Both vehicles came to rest off the roadway on the northwest corner of SH 101 and FM 2265.
Hilton was transported to Denton Medical City with
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