By Lucky Kidd
McPHERSON, Kan. — McPherson City Commissioners approved a change order on purchase of a new Ambulance. EMS director Will Moore said there was an increase of $3,956 in the chassis cost from the bid originally accepted last April. This brings the total cost, including trade-in to $301,655.
Moore also gave Commissioners an annual EMS Report, in which he said they responded to 2,547 calls for service in 2024,an increase of 129 calls for 2023. Total calls for the year, including such things as stand-by calls, were 2,585, an increase of 71 from the prior year. The actual number of transports was actually down a bit, reflecting calls cancelled en route.
There were also fewer transfers in 2024, in particular those from nursing homes and especially from Pleasant View Home in Inman, which is in the McPherson EMS service area. Monday was the busiest day of the week for EMS in 2024, a change from 2023 when it was Wednesday, and the 5 PM hour the busiest hour. The largest number of patient transports were to McPherson Hospital, with the second largest group to Hutchinson Regional Medical Center.
Commissioners approved expenditure of up to $40,000 for assorted training for police officers during 2025. Assistant Chief Todd Martens said this covers a variety of training officers need during the year, which they have to have to maintain their certification. The approval allows the Police Department to sign officers up for training as it becomes available.
Approval was also given to a payment to Travelers Insurance for a claim involving a police vehicle that struck a parked car on a curve while on patrol in November. This payment has already been made due to a Monday deadline for submission of 2024 transactions
Commissioners Tuesday approved replacement of an air lifting bag for the Fire Department. This bag is used for rescue operations, and they have a lifespan of 15 years. The current bag reached the end of service life last year. The replacement is the same brand as what they have now, purchased from Weis Fire and Safety of Salina for not to exceed just over $2,450 including an allowance for a freight charge.
Approval was also given for payment on a hydraulic leak on Ladder 1, which Conrad Fire Equipment was able to do on-site at a cost of just under $1,700, and the annual payment to McPherson County for the city share of maintenance and operating costs of the Law Enforcement Center including that for 911 and the LEC’s phone system, not to exceed $581.550.
Thanks to winter storms, not a lot of work was accomplished on city projects last week. Public Works Director Jeff Woodward said they were able to get some work done on the grit removal system for the Wastewater Treatment Plant,and work will resume this week on Lift Station 3, which weather will not impact to any great degree.
Board of Public Utilities General Manager Josh Bedel said in his report electric and water crews spent most of last week in the shop doing maintenance on equipment.
The Commission approved renewal of the software licenses for the city’s GIS system which is also used by other city departments, purchase of geogrid for the Sycamore area street reconstruction which is being done now to make sure they have it when work resumes, a contract for spreading of biosolids from the wastewater plant on city-owned fields, and a conditional job offer for a temporary equipment operator along with one for a park maintenance worker.
An evaluation hearing on a Community Development Block Grant for COVID-related technology and infrastructure upgrades was conducted during the meeting. Crystal Hinnen from Ransom Financial Group, which administered the grant, said the grants to eight local businesses were for things to “keep them open in the event of another pandemic.”
This included such things as point of sale and scanning systems, software to allow work from home, infrastructure improvements, some furniture and office equipment, and even a floral cooler. All told this came to just over 155 thousand dollars including grant administration costs.
The Commission approved, subject to review by the City Attorney, updated job descriptions for most of the city’s administrative staff. Loyd Group consulted with the city on the updates, designed to ensure continuity of services and maximizing efficiency. Commissioners authorized the Human Resources Director to draft a request for proposals for a compensation and classification study for the city, and it approved promotion of Human Resources Generalist Molly Dean to Assistant Human Resources Director along with the related wage change.
