NICHOLS, Iowa–After a series of heavy rains this spring, the Nichols City Council identified working on their storm sewer system as an important project to address this summer. They will also look into an additional sewer concern as well as ongoing alley maintenance and provide their annual spring cleanup day.
In recent weeks, the City of Nichols, like much of Muscatine County, has received heavy spring rains. During downpours or prolonged rain storms, residents have noticed water backing up onto the roads, creating undesirable driving conditions. Council members have noted that over the last several years, some ditches have gotten filled in by residents, exacerbating the standing water problem.
To address these issues, the City of Nichols plans to contact the City of West Liberty to borrow their line jetting equipment, which they will use to clean out the storm sewers. If clearing any buildup of debris inside the storm sewers does not fixt the issue, the City of Nichols will revisit it and decide on next steps.
The City of Nichols will also look into a concern brought to them by a resident about one of the risers connecting a private waterline to the city watermain. According to the resident, their drains drain slowly, even though they have had their line inspected and it does not appear to have problems before the city owned riser. When they have had the line cleaned, the issue resolved quickly but would then return. The city wastewater manager suspected a collapse somewhere in the riser created the problem. The city intends to reach out to BBB Construction, who they have worked with previously, to inspect the riser and recommend how to repair it.
As the city continues to work on infrastructure projects, it also plans to go through its gravel alleyways and re-crown them. This process will make them more level, removing mounds and potholes and leaving a more even driving surface. The City of Nichols undertook a similar project last summer with satisfactory results.
With the weather warm enough for residents to work on both the inside of their homes and their yards, the City of Nichols will hold its annual spring cleanup day June 22. People may put out any bulky waste items they would like to dispose of on June 21 to ensure they get picked up.
With people thinking about cleaning up, the City would like to remind them that they can increase the amount of trash they can have picked up on each trash day by purchasing a 95 gallon rolling bin for $55. Residents wanting a larger bin can pick one up from Oveson, the city’s solid waste collector, or have it delivered to their house for a $30 fee.
In other business, the Nichols Volunteer Fire Department continues to work to purchase air packs and a new brush truck that they previously received a United States Department of Agriculture grant for. They plan to make a committee to look into finding these items at a reasonable price and ordering them before the term of the grant expires.
