05-25-82 S&W Comm MinutesSEWER AND WATER COMMITTEE
CONFERENCE ROOM
4:00 P.M. Tuesday
May 25, 1982
Present were Mayor McDowell, Councilmen Ruiz, Nystul and Saverud, Director of Public
Works Hafferman, Water Superintendent Hughes and Paul Stokes, Stahly Engineering.
Councilman Ruiz presided,
A committee to form a sewer district for Evergreen, composed of Dick Holt, Bennett Jones,
Ralph Robinson and Gene Thompson presented a request to the Sewer & Water Committee. They
asked if we would administer a grant for a study if they could obtain one. This would be
the first step toward a sewer system which they would like to hook up to our lines to the
Wastewater Treatment Plant, When the study was made for our plant, the Evergreen area
was included and the plant built to accomodate outlying areas. The committee stated they
would use the plant at night after our peak load was through.
After discussion, the committee agreed to recommend to the Council that we would administer
a grant should they recieve one. Councilman Ruiz asked the committee from Evergreen to put
their request in the form of a letter so that copies could be distributed to all of our
City Council members,
Paul Stokes, Stahly Engineering,addressed the committee on the latest developments in the
sludge project. The proposal for the third and last step in the EPA funded grant will cost
about 2.4 million and will be used to install tanks, 50' in diameter and 32' deep, which
will be buried about 201, These tanks will digest and storp, sludge in the winter when it
is not possible to inject with the Big A, The C4y:',s share, plus some registered warrants
for past expense, will be approximately $700,000M, A revenue bond issue will be neces-
sary and a raise in sewer use fee will be forthcoming to cover payment, The Sewer and Water
Committee agreed that Stahly Engineering should hire Tom Flynn to do a study. His study
would be paid 75% from EPA funds as part of the project I,
Director of Public Works Hafferman explained a problem with Rogers Machinery Company, and
asked permission to send the attached letter,
The Committee gave permission to send the letter,
Director of Public Works Hafferman asked that as many of the Council as possible view a
12 minute film showing how a sewer cleaning machine works, Sewer lines should be cleaned
at least every three years and more often on some sections, The machine is hoped to be
budgeted and purchased in the next fiscal year..
Director of Public Works Hafferman asked for permission to sell for scrap certain cast iron
fittings with lead joints which are not used by the Water Department any more and are just
taking up a lot of space for storage. Discussion followed that we should get ready for
another auction sale for our surplus property,
Director of Public Works Hafferman explained the changes made in the sewer and water lines
for the Grandview Townhouses and asked Committee Chairman Ruiz to approve them. After
discussion, Councilman Ruiz signed and approved the lines,
Meeting adjourned at 5:45 P,M.
City Of Kalispell
Phone 406-755-5457 P.O. Box 1035 Kalispell, Montana 59901
May 26, 1982
Rogers Manufacturing Company, Inc,
P. 0. Box 23279
Portland, Oregon 97223
ATT: Mr, David Vanderbeek
RE: Roots Model 418 RCS JH Blower
Dear Mr. Vanderbeek:
Reference is made to your letter of May 5, 1982, pertaining to the above subject,
This letter has been reviewed with the Mayor and City Council Committee,
It is our opinion that the City of Kalispell could not have known there were
limitations on the number of belts this blower,., could handle, We have two similar
blowers installed, in about 1976, with 6 belts, One is still operating to per-
fection and the other, which the subject bower was to replace, failed because
foreign matter was sucked into, and jammed, the impellers,
Nothing we can find in the instructions sent with the new blower would indicate
a potential problem with more than 3 belts, It is noted on Page 5 of these in-
struction that "belt drive arrangements usually employ two or more V-,belts run-
ning in grooved sheaves,"
We also cannot understand why the drive end shaft of the to -be replaced blower
which failed, did not shear when the foreign matter jammed the impellers, In,
stead, we had failure at the non: -drive bearing end,
It is our opinion that if limitations such as the number of belts is to be con-
sidered, it should be clearly pointed out in the 'Fperating Limi.tationst' of the
instructions.:
The position of the City of Kalispell on this matter is that the supplier should
be knowledgeable through experience on the limitations of the equipment they sell,
Since we were not alerted to potential problems when we ordered the new sheave,
which was received requiring 5 belts, and the instructions do not clearly define
such limitations, we do not see how we could have prevented this unfortunate in-
cident. Therefore, we can accept no responsibility for the occurance of this
incident.
Sincerely, /
Robert T. Haffer�an
Director of Public Works
RTH:ms
cc: Mayor LeRoy E. McDowell
Louis Ruiz