At the April 7 meeting, the Rushford Village Council ran through a quick agenda. The bulk of discussion came during a report from Adam Johnson, Public Works Maintenance Assistant in lieu of Public Works Supervisor Darrin Dessner.
Johnson let the council know time was spent recently working on a rock slide on Aspen Road and a large tree down. Public Works is trying to fill potholes until they can get the equipment out grading gravel roads. They plan to start spot grading this week.
The water system has been having a fault code since around March 20. Johnson indicated there’s been three or four, before the fault went away, but recently the issue has returned. NES is looking into the error. Most importantly, he stated everything is pumping as it should. Public works believes that there is a switch in the meter that could be faulty.
Councilor Mike Ebner, running the meeting in the absence of Mayor Dennis Overland, stated the issue is a long standing one. He indicated it was brought to council attention back in 2020 when Kyle Chiglo was Public Works supervisor and then again in 2021 when Trenten Chiglo was supervisor.
“That actually has been going back since before you guys started,” said Ebner. “Both Kyle and Trenten told us about those fault codes and Dennis has known about it. It’s been going on for a while.”
Johnson and Ebner also updated the council about equipment issues. Ebner stated that on March 18 the control box on the F550 shorted out, due to a bad wire. Dessner has spoken to Universal Truck Equipment regarding the control box. They do not have a new one, so the plan is to rebuild the current one, which is under warranty.
The problematic Freightliner truck is due back to the village shop this week. Johnson stated that the company is bringing it down and will be going through it with Public Works.
According to Ebner, Syverson Truck Center talked to the front end company who manufactured the parts which have gone out in the truck now on multiple occasions.
“Basically, Syverson talked to the front end company and told them the truck’s been waiting. It’s gone on too long,” he stated. “They still have not [sic] did any testing on the front end that was broken. So, Syverson talked the manufacturer into sending a brand new unit to get the truck back on the road. So, we’re still in limbo with what’s gonna happen, but the truck is going to be put together and we’re gonna have the truck. Then, we’ll deal with the rest of it as needed. That’s where we’re sitting, but it will be back next week.”
The department also spent time looking at a 2014 International 7500 plow truck to serve as a backup next season. Time without one, while the Freightliner was inoperable, was difficult for the village. There is no price or other details on the truck at this time. Ebner said the department didn’t want to pursue it further until they knew of all costs related to getting the Freightliner operational.
“We can pursue it down the road if you wish,” said Ebner. “My take on it is, we may want to wait a little while. I think we’re out of the woods for really worrying about a backup right now.”
The council did approve the purchase of one new digital water meter. Johnson told the council that two meters owned by the village were bad. One was able to be put into service after new parts were added to make it serviceable. There are no backups and the village doesn’t want to stockpile them since they are battery operated and the lifespan is limited. It takes roughly three weeks to get a new unit.
The council also set their annual road tour date. The council will meet at 5:30 p.m. on May 5, ahead of the regular council meeting. Public Works will pick out roads to highlight work and of highest priority need for the council to look at and discuss.
Also on the calendar is the annual Spring Cleanup. It’s slated for May 9, from 8 a.m. until noon at the village maintenance shop.
There is also a multi-city meeting on April 22. The cities of Rushford Village, Rushford, and Peterson will meet to attend a Rushford Economic Development Authority meeting on housing.
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