Ogallala, Ne – The Ogallala City Council met in regular session Tuesday night. It was a fairly fast meeting. They had an update from the Goodall YMCA and had an update on the new water operator PeopleService Incorporated who took over operation of the water and wastewater operations recently in Ogallala. City Administrator Kevin Wilkins said, “PeopleService has been managing our water and wastewater for about three months now it's been good for staff because they have 110 people that are all trained water operators. Our local staff gets better support. We've retained all the local staff, basically they just see a change of name on their paycheck. They're better supported, communications have improved, and we've achieved some cost savings as a city. We're anticipating even more cost savings as we get into some of those improvements that we need at the wastewater treatment plant because you have that depth of experience. "
LISTEN to Full Interview with City Manager Kevin Wilkins below, sponsored by North Platte Kubota.
The City Council did approve the purchase of a new city bus. The council was already prepared to replace one of the older buses, but the process was sped up because that bus was recently involved in an accident. The council passed a resolution to seek Federal financial aid in the purchase of a new bus. Wilkins said the city would be responsible for about 10% of the purchase.
The Ogallala Tree Board also gave a report. Barb Jeffries told the Council the board has a grant to cut down approximately 15-20 trees in the city that would be deemed a nuisance. Wilkins said the city will be sending letters to homeowners who have been identified as having any nuisance trees. Part of the grant, the tree board has been approved for includes the homeowner agreeing to replace and maintain a new tree. If the homeowner agrees to that, the city will cut down the trees at no cost.
The next Ogallala City Council Meeting is Tuesday, February 11.