Mayor: Phil Auld
City Council:
Bill Smith (term expires 12-31-2011) (Mayor Pro-tem for 2010)
Nina Norris (term expires 12-31-2011)
James Voss (term expires 12-31-2011)
Jane Benning (term expires 12-31-13)
Mike Kula (term expires 12-31-13)
City Clerk: Judy Lahey
Public Works Director: Russ Gager
To contact the city, call 319-448-4359 or email: cityofwalker@iowatelecom.net
WALKER CITY HALL NEWS FROM MAYOR PHIL AULD -
To the citizens of Walker:
I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on several current issues and activities for Walker.
Please congratulate Jane Benning and Mike Kula for being elected to our City Council. Their enthusiasm and fresh ideas are greatly appreciated. Jane is in charge of our Streets Department and Mike is in charge of the Parks. On a sad note, Councilperson Nina Norris resigned effective June 30, 2010. Nina's no-nonsense and straightforward approach to city matters will be greatly missed. With council veterans Bill Smith and James Voss, the Council is active in taking care of our city problems and issues.
I have been asked when we are going to do something about our streets. Unfortunately, the city does not have a lot of money to repair all of our streets. The City Council went out for bids to repair the worst parts of the streets and we will get some of them completed yet this year. The Council also hired the engineering firm of HR Green to do a study and recommend the best approach to repair all of our streets. This will be a long term process with no easy solutions.
The replacement of our 95-year old water tower is moving forward. The City hired HR Green last year and the engineering work is progressing smoothly. The current plans call for the new 150,000 gallon water tower to be placed beside our old tower on Rowley street. The new tower will be slightly higher than the existing one. Because the city was able to use this location, we will have money to repair some of our oldest water mains. If you would like to see the updated plans, please stop by City Hall. The cost of this project is approximately $1.29 million.
The city has also contracted with HR Green to design a new waste water treatment facility. The City applied for and received $570,000 of the I-jobs money the State of Iowa awarded this month. This is a good start for a $2.8 million dollar project and we will continue to apply for grants. The preliminary plans for this project are also available at city hall.
I have enjoyed the Mayor's role for the past six months and look forward to the many upcoming challenges. If you have ideas or suggestions on how to improve the city, please contact City Hall at 319-448-4359. Or better yet, get involved with one of our civic organizations like the Lions Club or the Walker Betterment Club.
Phil Auld
Mayor
