Marquette Council hears update on Evans agreement

By Audrey Posten, North Iowa Times Editor

Marquette city attorney Dan Key updated the council, at its May 17 meeting, on the status of the agreement with Dave Evans for completion of his home at the Timber Ridge Subdivision and removal of a mobile home, which was placed in violation of city code. 

At the last council meeting, Key stated that the agreement says the city agrees not to enforce its laws as long as the permanent structure is completed by Nov. 1, 2016.

If the permanent structure (his home) is not completed by that date, Key said Evans could be granted an extension until March 1, 2017, upon presentation of a viable construction plan to the city council detailing the nature of any unfinished construction and how it will be completed by the extended deadline.

If Evans is granted an extension, and work on the home is not complete and the mobile home still remains, Evans would have to pay $200 for each day past March 1, 2017, Key stated.

Last week, Key said the terms of that agreement have not changed, noting that Evans’ lawyer, Anne Kruse, has approved the agreement. Evans was expected to sign and submit it by the end of last week, he said.

Well update

Public works director Jason Sullivan told the council he will look into treatment costs, as well as the costs of drilling a new well at Timber Ridge. 

For months, Sullivan has tried several fixes for the well, which requires corrective work after tests found water had higher amounts of radium.

One fix included plugging off the bottom 200 feet of the well, where the radium was coming in, but the capacity of the well was reduced dramatically, Sullivan explained.

“When it was initially drilled, they thought the water might have nitrates, so they drilled deeper and got radium,” he said.

Several tests, including a hydrologic packer test, which sends a bladder into the well to test the water, have been performed, with results coming back in the next few weeks, Sullivan noted.

“A new well might be more cost-effective,” Sullivan said. “I’ll get prices and see where we want to go.”