City will see about $1.4 million in coronavirus relief

The City of Columbia Falls is expecting to get about $1.422 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act — the latest round of stimulus funding from the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief recently passed by Congress.

City manager Susan Nicosia suggested to city council last week that some of the funding — about $1 million — be used to upgrade the city’s sewer system, as it will eventually need a new bioreactor.

The city is under stringent water quality requirements for its sewer discharge because it releases its treated wastewater into the Flathead River.

Other projects could also include upgrading a lift station at 12th Ave West. In other news:

• The city OK’d a contract with PND Engineers beginning April 1 for engineering services, if it needs them, for $165. That’s the firm former Public Works Director Tyler Bradshaw works for in Juneau, Alaska.

Bradshaw recently left the city to return to the firm, where he worked prior to becoming public works director a few years ago. The city is searching for a new public works director, so the contract is a stop-gap measure.

• A request for bids for new tennis courts went out recently for Hoerner Park. The Park currently is a baseball field across the street from the high school. Four new tennis courts will be built there. In addition, the city plans on putting in a small playground.

The old courts will remain at Columbus Park, but are in poor condition. The city decided to build

the new courts at Hoerner, because the soils at Columbus are unstable — an old school that sat there decades ago was also buried on site.

• The city will hold a public hearing on spending $111,893.96 of CARES Act funding to repave Sixth Avenue West from Highway 2 south to 13th St. West. The city has already awarded a bid for the project. The hearing is at 7 p.m. April 5.