The City of Mexico’s Council approved several measures this week for the Public Works Department that will either save money in the long run or make operations more efficient.

One of the measures was to approve a contract with Horner & Shifrin for engineering services to conduct a study at the city’s wastewater plant. According to Public Works Director Drew Williford, his staff has observed the potential to bypass the trickling filter at the plant. Williford told council members at their meeting on Monday, Dec. 11, that the need for the process has declined since a few large operations were taken off the city’s system.

“It’s a substantial study, a substantial cost but the benefit could pay back in less than a year,” Williford said.

The cost of the study will be about $18,000 but Williford said the city would make that cost up in other savings.

“We have several chemicals that get added to that and the maintenance costs,” Williford said. “We certainly think it’s worth the cost of the study. This has some interesting implications if the study proves it.”

The city will also invest in a new shop and break room at the wastewater plant to replace the current setup that doesn’t meet regulations and doesn’t feature amenities that current wastewater treatment plants require. Williford said the current setup uses the old animal shelter and doesn’t have things such as locker rooms and showers, which is something that is required. The city will also demolish the garage that holds the jet truck.

Engineering will have to come first but Williford said his department has about $315,000 budgeted for the project. 

“We want everything to be well planned out with this,” Williford said. “This has a huge potential to help increase efficiency and safety at our plant.”

The council also approved a new agreement for wastewater industrial pretreatment services that will cost just over $39,000. Williford said the city had budgeted $45,000 for the services. The previous deal was not to exceed $40,000.

The council also approved repairs on the city’s rail spur that popped up during an inspection after other repairs were made. An additional $20,000 of work needs to be completed on top of the nearly $70,000 that has already been spent. Williford said with age and workload the costs of upkeep on the spur will increase as time goes.

“Overall the rail spur was not designed for the loads currently going through,” Williford said. “The spur itself is aging and I think you’re going to expect more costs on this particular spur.”

In other news, the city renewed a contract with three other entities to support the Economic Development Fund which includes the Chamber of Commerce, Progress Mexico, and Audrain County. Each entity contributes $5,000 to the fund. The agreement has been in place since 2017.