The City of Knox is preparing to bid the demolition of four blighted houses. Mayor Dennis Estok says bid packets will be ready the first week of March with a goal of having the houses down in April. Continue reading
Knox Board of Works Opens Lift Station Bid
The Knox Board of Works received a lone bid for installation of a lift station to serve the new Traffic Control Specialists facility. Culver-based Thomas Excavating and Welding submitted a total bid of $39,574. That includes $19,638 for installation of the lift station and an additional $19,936 for a force main. Continue reading
Knox Water Superintendent Discusses Upgrades with Board of Works
The Knox City Council’s approval last week of water and sewer rate increases mean infrastructure repairs that have been on hold can move forward. Water Superintendent Todd Gardner told the board of works electrical upgrades are needed in well houses two and three. Continue reading
Knox Receives Grant for Railroad Markings
The railroad crossing pavement markings within the Knox city limits will be repainted this spring. Street Superintendent Jeff Borg told the board of works this week the city got a $6,800 grant from INDOT to redo them. Continue reading
Knox Blight Elimination Program Moves Ahead
The City of Knox is planning to move ahead with its blight elimination efforts. Knox was awarded grant funding from the state in 2014 to buy and demolish homes that were in poor condition, but since then, the project has seen little progress, due in part to trouble the city’s had with filing the required documents required by the grant program. Continue reading
Knox Water Superintendent Outlines Plans for Brown Circle
The Knox Water Department’s list of proposed summer projects includes tying homes that are on a 2.5 inch galvanized line in to an existing 6 inch line. The old line on Brown Circle was run in the 1950s to accommodate trailer housing for Kingsbury Ordinance Plant employees during the Korean War. Knox Water Superintendent Todd Gardner told the board of works the homes built there in the 1960s just used the existing lines. Even though the city upgraded the area later, only a few homes are tied into the new line.
Knox Mayor Authorizes Purchase for TCS Expansion
The construction of a new facility for an expanding Knox business will remain on schedule after Knox Mayor Dennis Estok administratively authorized the purchase of a lift station to serve the site. City officials previously agreed to run water and sewer lines to the new Traffic Control Specialists, Inc. location west of Toll Brothers and Knox Fertilizer in the industrial park. The company broke ground on the project in November. A May 27th ribbon cutting is scheduled. Continue reading
Knox Residents Reminded of Snow Routes, Parking Rules
The recent snowfall was no match for the new City of Knox plow truck. Street Superintendent Jeff Borg told the board of works last week it handled well and was able to plow the streets without any mechanical problems. Continue reading
Street Sign Replacement Scheduled on Heaton Street
New street signs will soon be installed on U.S. 35 through Knox in order to meet a federal requirement. Continue reading
Proposed TCS Relocation Will Require Infrastructure Upgrades
The proposed relocation of a Knox business will require upgrades to the water and sewer systems in the Knox Industrial Park. Traffic Control Specialists hopes to break ground this fall on a new building at the southeast corner of 250 East and Pacific Avenue south of Toll Brothers and west of Knox Fertilizer. Continue reading
Knox Sewer System Requires Expensive Upgrades
The City of Knox wastewater treatment system needs some costly upgrades to address aging infrastructure. Superintendent Kelly Clemons told the board of works this week a sewer main that broke near the White House Motel a few weeks ago is 80 years old. Crews patched it together, but that’s not considered a long-term fix. Continue reading
Wet Summer Creates Work for Knox Street Department
The Knox Street Department is trying to keep up with the mosquito population as a result of continued rains. Superintendent Jeff Borg advised the board of works he sprayed extensively Monday night and did some spot spraying last week. Continue reading
Knox Water Department Replaces Obsolete Hydrants
Knox Water Department crews recently replaced a couple of fire hydrants that were part of the city’s original water system. Superintendent Todd Gardner says the new hydrants were installed on West Delaware Street at Pearl and Main Streets. The new hydrants have a six-inch flow capacity, compared to the four-inch of the previous ones. Water Superintendent Todd Gardner says the water flow capacity of the new ones has doubled as a result. Continue reading
Knox Board of Works Approves Paving Contractor Switch
The Knox Board of Works revisited the bids for street paving and changed contractors during a special-called Monday morning meeting. City officials say the initial low bid from E&B Paving does not include enough asphalt to take care of the required 2 inch overlay on Lake Street to handle drainage issues. Continue reading
Knox Board of Works to Discuss Street Paving Bids
The Knox Board of Public Works will discuss street paving bids during a special-called Monday morning meeting. Last week they opened bids from three companies for work on Lake, East and Potter Streets and Myrtle Court. The paving bids are the lone item on the agenda for Monday’s 9:30 a.m. meeting at city hall.
Knox Board of Works to Meet Today
The Knox Board of Public Works will meet this morning to take care of end-of-the-year business.
The board will open and review sealed quotes for purchase of a truck and bed for the street department. Street Superintendent Jeff Borg said previously that he will be ordering more parts for the new truck as money is available.
Knox City Street Department Hoping to Start Spring Projects
The Knox Board of Public Works learned that the street department is working hard to start on spring projects.
Street Superintendent Jeff Borg told the board that the crews are attempting to work on alleys to smooth them out. Street sweeping started but had to be put on hold as temperatures did not allow for that activity to immediately continue. Equipment maintenance has been ongoing until the weather breaks. Borg notified the board that two new plows are needed for the trucks as they are getting to the point of deterioration. Crews keep repairing the plows, but they’re hanging on by a thread.
Knox Board of Works Given Update on Lift Station Project
The Knox Board of Works received an update on the lift station project on Clabaugh Drive.
A pay application for $10,553.07 was approved. Bob Aloi from Territorial Engineering explained that the pump issue over the winter was reportedly caused by a problem with the force main. He said once the wastewater department crews finished cleaning the force main, crews will see how well the pump works. Aloi doesn’t anticipate any further costs in this project, but if the crews evaluate the pump after the force main is cleared and they find that it’s not working properly, crews would need to remove the pump and reevaluate the situation which could cost the city more money.
The project, which was supposed to be completed before the winter season, is nearly finished. The old lift station still needs to be removed and other items need to be wrapped up, including paving, before it is all said and done.
Residence in Knox May Soon Be Demolished
The attorney for the city of Knox is drafting a demolition order for a property within the city limits at the request of Plan Commissioner Bruce Williams. Williams told the Board of Works this week that the building located at 409 and 411 Lewis Drive is in very bad shape. He said the building has not been lived in for about four years, and it’s falling apart.
Knox Board of Works Approves Pay App for Lift Station Pump
The lift station for the city of Knox is reportedly “beyond its last legs,” according to an official with the city water department. Bob Alloy with Territorial Engineering approached the Knox Board of Works this week and explained that a crew is still working to try to get the new pump operational, having already visited the city six times previously to try to repair the problematic pump.
