Welcome to the city of St Joseph's weekly digital newsletter. City Link is your source for timely and relevant information from your local government.
Thursday, February 14, 2019
New Buses Coming Soon

St. Joseph Transit will soon be getting new buses. The styling, paint and graphics, windows, seating and accessibility features of the new buses will be very similar to those purchased in 2012. Once the new buses arrive in St. Joseph, there will still be work to be done to prepare them for service. Several pieces of equipment, such as the farebox, 2-way radio, surveillance cameras and mobile data tablets, have to be swapped out of old buses into the new ones. Maintenance staff will need training on the new features of the engine and other components, and drivers have to be trained on differences in operating the new buses. It is estimated customers can expect to see the new buses in service in late March.

The old buses are over 15 years old and most have well over 600,000 miles on them. This is far beyond the expected useful life of 10-13 years and 350,000 to 500,000 miles. The city ordered the new buses last year using all local funds after it appeared there would not be any federal assistance. Shortly after the order was placed, the city received notice of a Federal Transit Administration grant of $4.7 million to be awarded to replace the rest of the old buses, which will allow for the expansion of the bus fleet. The city has planned to increase the amount of bus service for many years. With the acquisition of new buses, St. Joseph Transit can finally move forward with providing more frequent service during the morning and evening peak times on weekdays.
Biological Concerns at Water Protection

The final clarifiers are a key component at the water protection facility and the growth of algae has impacted the facility's Missouri Department of Natural Resources permit. The algae growth is causing solids to flow over the weir washers into the effluent trough and into the Ultraviolet (UV) Disinfection process. This used to occur only during summer months, but since the Ammonia Removal Project, we grow algae all year round. When it enters the UV, it plugs up the baffle plates and they have the potential to blow out and damage the lamps if they are not cleaned frequently. There are a total of 970 lamps. The algae that does make it through the baffle plates affects the UV process causing light transmittance to be reduced forcing the bank lights to operate at higher output than normal, meaning electrical power wasted.

The purchase of four weir washers for the final clarifiers will alleviate this problem. The weir washers spray high pressure water on the weir pans to keep the weirs clean and free from all the algae growth. It also keeps the baffles and the lamps free of all the algae. The UV transmittance stays where it should and on a normal sunny day, operations can run two channels of lamps at 50% power instead of all three at 100% and not have all that extra power consumption.
Busy Time for the Civic Arena

Many residents may not know about all the events that take place at the Civic Arena. The building is utilized more than one might think and right now staff is in the middle of the busiest season of the year for the facility. Events are taking place every weekend with smaller events also occupying the space throughout the week. These events are time consuming and, with the small number of staff at the Civic Arena, it takes a very committed and hard working team to get things done as each event has its own special needs.

Some events, such as a recent visit from the Harlem Globetrotters, make for a more intense week. Lifting the basketball floor is a strenuous job and that’s just the start of getting ready for an event like that. The bleachers are pulled out, railings screwed in and stairs placed properly for the safety of the patrons. Basketball goals are set in place and tightened down. The scoreboard, time clocks and possession arrows need to be running properly. After all the safety features are taken care of, then it is time to dress the arena with chairs, tables and curtains along with cleaning of the bleachers and restrooms. The staff makes sure the promoter and patrons are happy during the event, still getting last minute requests taken care of and keeping the bathrooms stocked and cleaned. Staff also makes sure the concession stand is running smoothly. Once the event is over with, it’s time to take it all down, clean again and get set up for the next event.

Budget Preparations for Fiscal Year 2019-2020

The City Council’s annual budget is the single most important document. It is a road map in communicating the policy priorities of the governing body. The challenge with every budget year is to provide efficient and fiscally responsible public services. The annual budget must achieve a balance between... read more
Presidents' Day

In observance of Presidents' Day, February 18, city offices will be closed with the exception of:
~REC Center - 6am-10pm
~Landfill - 7am-2pm
(816) 271-5300