Council hears Connie’s Bridge update at November 28 meeting

Members of the Globe City Council: Mayor Al Gameros, Vice Mayor Mike Stapleton (District 4), and Council members Freddy Rios (District 1), Mike Pastor (District 2), Jesse Leetham (District 3), Mariano Gonzalez (District 5), and Fernando Shipley (District 6). All members were in attendance at this meeting except Mayor Gameros, Councilman Rios, and Councilman Pastor.

Connie’s Bridge project could finish in January

Representatives from Meridian Engineering briefy updated Council on the Upper Pinal Creek (Connie’s Bridge) construction.

The abutments, pier, and bridge have been poured, and work on the deck will be starting soon, according to the engineers. They said all materials are on site, so no delays are expected due to supply chain issues.

The schedule has been impacted by weather, so completion has been pushed back to the end of January, although it could slide further if there are more delays.

Measures have been taken to divert any water that might flow in due to winter weather, the engineers said.

City to receive $2.1 million for water main replacement

Globe is set to receive funding of $2.1 million in federal money for the replacement of the City’s water main from the ADOT facility to the fairground’s entrance.

The funds will come from the US Army Corps of Engineers, and requires a match amount of $700,000 – which will likely come from WIFA or in-kind funding, according to Public Works’ Luis Chavez.

Representative Greg Stanton was instrumental in obtaining the funds for the City. Councilman Shipley pointed out that Rep. Stanton is not Globe’s congressman, but he has nevertheless gone to bat to secure this funding for Globe. 

City Manager Paul Jepson said this funding is also the fruit of the City’s contract with a D.C.-based lobbyist, Bob Holmes, who specializes in Arizona.

Council voted to sign a project partnership agreement (PPA) with the Corps of Engineers in order to receive the funding.

Chavez said construction could start around November 2024. 

Motions approved

Council also approved motions for the following:

• Accounts payable in the amount of $411,239.74
• Temporary occupancy for Pinal Gila Community Child Services at the Globe Head Start Building, located at 160 Murphy Street. City Manager Paul Jepson explained that the organization has office space in Miami, but they suffered water damage recently because of a broken water line. They will need temporary office space for about four months while the damage is repaired. The Murphy Street building is owned by the City of Globe and is currently vacant while the City seeks a new permanent use for the building. The City will not charge PGCCS for use of the building, and PGCCS will not be able to use the facilities for children’s activities.
• Temporary extension of a premises and patio permit for The Huddle, located at 392 N. Broad Street, for First Fridays and special event weekends.
• Moving forward an application for a Series 6 liquor license for Silver Tap (formerly Farley’s Pub) located at 230 N. Broad Street. Council held a public hearing prior to their vote, but no one had comments. Jepson pointed out that liquor license applications are not necessarily an automatic rubber-stamp, but the City fully supports this application. The license will expire in June 2024. Council will vote on final approval at a future meeting.
• A contract with Public Sector Personnel Consultants to conduct a compensation study for the City of Globe for $14,000. Jepson explained that the last salary study was done three years ago and needs to be updated due to changes in market conditions. Jepson said the study will be expanded this year to include more non-monetary aspects of compensation, although the benefits component will not be done this year. Kay Tilzer from Public Sector Personnel Consultants said organizations can determine how often to do salary studies by looking at whether they have difficulty recruiting and retaining people.
• Contributions to the Gila PROUD Partnership’s US-60 Highway Clean-up Program in the amount of $10,000 for FY2023 and $10,000 for FY2024. Jepson explained that Gila PROUD rents a truck and hires two people to do highway cleanup throughout the region, including in Globe.
• A consulting contract with Philip D. Cushman for land annexation assistance in an amount not to exceed $25,000. The initial $12,500 will be funded from this year’s budget, and the remainder is to be approved as part of the FY2024-25 budget process. Jepson explained that Cushman has the expertise to handle annexation requests, which can be very complicated – including being former city manager of Duncan and being former military. Cushman will work under Development Services. Jepson pointed out that the City would be annexing small amounts of land to accommodate people who want to join the City.

We see this as a great win, also a way to add additional rooftops to our population, and that brings additional revenues. So this is a win-win for the City. – Linda Oddonetto, Economic and Community Development Department

• An agreement with Tri-City Regional Sanitary District to provide temporary wastewater treatment services until the property is available for connection to the District’s Facility. Jepson pointed out that this agreement was discussed at Council’s previous meeting and was committed to by the City four years ago. The properties involved are within the City of Globe but will get service quicker and less expensively through Tri-City, Jepson said.
• A request to purchase a 2023 Ford F150 4×4 from Courtesy Ford of Globe in the amount of $51,756.11. Vince Mariscal explained that the truck will be used for the wastewater department. Jepson said the amount will also cover licensing fees.
• An intergovernmental agreement with the Town of Miami in the amount of $73,000 for the Copper Mountain Transit System. Jepson explained that Globe enters this agreement every year, although it will change in the future as the system changes over to the Intergovernmental Public Transit Authority. The City pays the amount in quarterly installments.
• A change order to a contract with ASR Construction Group for Wastewater Treatment Plant Oxidation Ditch Maintenance, in the amount of $4,967.19. The funds will be included in an available contract contingency of $8,770.20, previously approved. Vince Mariscal explained that the change order relates to a cleaning and inspection of the ditch this past summer. Last year, the workers encountered trouble removing muck and had to build a berm to contain the sludge. This year, the workers installed a sump for future use.

 

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The Globe City Council meets every second and fourth Tuesday of the month at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall. The meetings are currently open to the public at 50% capacity. Members of the public are requested to wear a mask except when seated. Seating is limited to allow for social distancing.

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