At its April 11 meeting, the City Council approved the purchase of a well control system in the amount of $68,680. The system will give public works supervisors the ability to remotely turn wells on or off without requiring someone to drive out to the location if issues arise.

Public Works Supervisors will receive alerts via their smartphones when there is an issue with a well, standpipe, or water tank, as well as be able to check the status of wells.

Supervisors will be able to remotely identify currently pumping wells in addition to pinpointing which individual wells are idling, he said.

The system will replace the current landlines the department utilizes for alert calls, so the city will be able to cross off some Verizon charges for some lines.

"Some of them are rather expensive, to the tune of $900 a month… So there will be a cost savings going forward as well," City Manager James Wieprecht said.

The current auto dialers using the telephone system do not push messages through all the time and the new system will alleviate these issues with a control module that consists of radio transmissions and receivers.

In addition to the increased abilities granted to the public works department, the system will also save the City thousands of dollars a year and pay for itself in just over six years, according to cost estimates by Mayor Pro Tem Joe Vigliotti.

"It is a pretty robust system that can be expanded," Wieprecht said.

Additional equipment can also be purchased in the future to incorporate additional features and expand to areas such as other city sewer pumping stations including the York Street Pumping Station, Carroll Vista Station, and Windy Hills.

Draft Capital Improvement Program Progresses

Work is underway refining estimates for City infrastructure projects that need attention within the next 6-years, with City Engineer CDM Smith, City Manager James Wieprecht said.

Top of the list, now that the cleaning and televising of the sewer lines has been completed, is calculating the costs for the number of areas that need to be lined, he said.

Another big city project is the completion of Antrim Boulevard, Wieprecht said. While it is not feasible the city will be constructing a road like that in the next six years, if the city plans to petition the project for the county and the state’s priority list, "It certainly needs to be on our radar screen in some way," Wieprecht said.

Discussion also included considerations for the demolition of the old creamery building. The city acquired the building in the early 2000s, and the last official word was for it to be demolished but the council never put any funding forward. Mayor Bradley Wantz expressed concern that in the past, buildings left to city control have been left to rot.

The building was initially considered as a potential event space, but no interest was expressed, he said. There has been interest in alternative usage for the building. The police department has suggested its demolition to create a parking lot to further supplement parking in the area, he said.

Wieprecht sought Council direction for the Creamery Building. We need to stabilize the exterior or demolish it completely, he said. Economic Development Director Jay Meashey is currently seeking grants to perform an engineering study on the Creamery Building so if the city does decide to go with an alternative use, they know if the building is solid, Wieprecht said.

More information is expected at this month’s council workshop.

Easter Egg Hunt Welcomes Huge Crowd

Despite the unpredictable Spring weather, Taneytown’s Parks and Recreation’s annual April Easter egg hunt saw 300 children frolicking to claim thousands of eggs, Councilwoman Judith Fuller said.

The soft ground of a recent rain could not deter the energy of the season and the annual holiday tradition with countless holiday goodies and a visit from the esteemed Easter bunny.

The tireless work of countless volunteers and the Parks and Recreation Department made the event possible, she said.

"It was a tremendous success," Fuller said.