The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About~Master - January 2025 Monthly Project Highlights Contact the City Manager's Office at 515-239-5101 515 Clark Avenue, Ames, IA 50010 Report compiled by Jeramy Neefus, Principal Clerk City Manager's Office JANUARY 2025 MONTHLY PROJECTHIGHLIGHTS CITY OFFICE New Podcast Launch: The City of Ames has launched a new podcast, “Ames in Focus,” featuring new episodes every Tuesday. This new platform will provide residents and listeners with updates on events, facilities, and programs of interest to those who live, work, or visit Ames. “Podcasts are a popular and portable way to get educated about a range of local issues,” said Bill Gebhart, with City of Ames Communication & Outreach and host of Ames in Focus. “We feature City of Ames employees from various departments with a range of expertise about everything from urban forestry to recycling. We also include elected officials, volunteers, and partner agencies to share information about our community.” On the first episode, Mayor John Haila reflects on his past seven years as the community’s leading elected official. Mayor Haila also discusses the successes of 2024 and the priorities for Ames City Council in 2025. Episodes of Ames in Focus can be found at www.CityOfAmes.org/podcast and on most podcast providers, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and more. Listeners are encouraged to subscribe to Ames in Focus on their favorite podcast platform. 2 PARKS & RECREATION Ada Hayden Heritage Park Path Replacement: City Council recently awarded a contract to WHKS Inc., Ames, Iowa, to complete the design and engineering of the Ada Hayden Heritage Park Path Replacement Project. Staff had a kickoff meeting to discuss the goals of the project and to review project timelines. WHKS will design a twelve-foot-wide path which will include any necessary drainage to minimize water/ice on the path. One of the goals during construction is to keep a walking loop open during the entirety of the project. The project is expected to take place in 2025. Aquatics: Aquatics partnered with Iowa State University (ISU) to offer a full LGI (Lifeguard Insructor) class January 10-12 with 10 participants. A LGI/T (Lifeguard Instructor Trainer) recertification class was held on January 18 with six participants. Swimming lessons at ISU State Pool began on Sunday, January 19, with 183 registrants. Bandshell Park Playground: Play-Pro Recreation, Des Moines, Iowa, has completed installation of a new playground at Bandshell Park. The playground structure installed in the park was selected based on public feedback received from residents at the 2024 Juneteenth Celebration, a Community Band Concert, and an online survey. Staff will be installing a concrete border, benches, and an accessible sidewalk in the spring. The picture below shows the playground that was recently installed. 3 Brookside Park Railings: Staff recently installed railings along the stairs on the east side of Brookside Park. The pictures below depict the railings that were recently installed. Fitch Family Indoor Aquatic Center: Contractors have been installing the precast concrete panels and the roof structure. Once the structure is complete, crews will begin installing the duct work, sprinkler system, electrical components, and lighting. The pictures below show work that has been completed thus far. 4 Homewood Golf Course: The Homewood Clubhouse had a new session of euchre and cribbage start mid-January. Euchre has 14 teams, or 28 participants, registered. Morning cribbage has 13 participants and evening cribbage has 12 participants. Wellness: Free drop-in classes were offered at the Community Center and Sixty Forward 5 from December 23 to January 4. Approximately 430 participants attended classes at the Community Center and 146 attended classes at Sixty Forward. Food donations were accepted for Food at First. From January 1-23, 49 people attended onboarding for the EGYM equipment at Sixty Forward. EGYM Smart Strength is a personalized, full-body training experience that guides users through circuit workouts rep-by-rep. Several wellness classes began in January with the following registrations: Program Registrations Group Fitness • Community Center • Sixty Forward 520 131 Taekwondo 108 West Coast Swing 16 Beginner Line Dance 7 6 WATER & POLLUTION CONTROL Emergency Power for SAM Pump Station: An emergency generator has been installed at the State and Mortensen (SAM) booster pump station. This will sustain pressure in the west pressure zone in the event of a power failure to the station. Final punch list items for this project are being completed. Emergency Power for Youth Sports Complex Wellfield: The preliminary design phase of the Hunziker Youth Sports Complex wellfield standby power project is nearing completion. The cultural resources review has been completed, with a “finding of no historic properties affected.” The cultural review and engineering design will be forwarded to FEMA for its concurrence. Presuming it is in agreement, the project would be eligible to move into the construction phase utilizing a combination of funding from the City Water Fund, Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and a FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant. When completed, the project will allow an emergency standby generator located adjacent to the Ames Dog Park to power four drinking water supply wells located in the sports complex. Update to 2020 Risk and Resilience Assessment: Under the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, all drinking water systems in the country were required to complete a “risk and resilience assessment” to harden physical and cyber assets and to improve the ability of the utility to respond to natural and human-caused disasters. The two emergency generator projects listed above are among several projects that resulted from that assessment. The remote site fencing project completed in 2024 and the access control upgrade project currently underway were also products of that evaluation. The federal rule requires that utilities update their assessments every five years. Staff are beginning that effort, which will be completed over the summer and fall of 2025. The update process will include a new physical security assessment by the Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a component of the Department of Homeland Security. Water Plant Open House Planned for April 19: The Water Plant will host a public open house on Saturday, April 19, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Individuals with autism, modified needs, or disabilities, along with their families, are invited to attend a modified open house from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. The highlight of the event will be a self-paced tour through the treatment areas of the Water Plant. There will also be numerous displays from other City departments. It is a great 7 opportunity for consumers to learn first-hand how water is treated in a way that is so special that it gets to share partial credit for a bowl game win! Pictured right: a Raygun “Meal of Champions” shirt offered for sale and a Facebook post by Iowa State Football. Wellfield Land Acquisition Continues: In September 2023, staff presented Council with a conceptual plan to acquire two distinct parcels of land for future wellfield development. In February 2024, Council approved the purchase of 42 acres immediately to the west of I-35. Staff continues to work with Story County Conservation, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service to acquire a second tract of additional ground nearby. The second parcel would likely be the location of the next wellfield that the City would develop for drinking water supply. WPCF Nutrient Reduction Modifications: Work is proceeding at a rapid pace by Woodruff Construction and its subcontractor team. The theme for January 2025 was “walls, walls, walls.” The exterior precast for the new Administration Building (pictured below) and the addition to the Sludge Pumping Building have been installed. Foundation walls were also poured for the new Grit Handling Building and the new Electrical Service building. Staff has started the procurement of the new interior furnishings for the Administration Building, and a contract for those items should be brought to Council in the early spring. The contractor anticipates turning the Administration building over to the City in late September. Staff will have a six-week window to move before the old Administration building is demolished to make room for new aeration basins.