NEW ULM — The Public Utilities Commission received a presentation on the electric transmission system pole replacement project.

The project has been in development for nearly five years. It was approved for construction at the July 28, 2020, PUC meeting, with an additional change order approved at the February 23 PUC meeting. The project is in its final stages of completion. Some additional groundwork is required before it is closed out.

Utility Engineer Dan Pirsig said the project was necessary to replace old transmission poles. The original wish-bone transmission poles along the old Water Street right-of-way were experiencing significant decay. Pirsig said the exact date these poles were installed could not be determined, but it was between the 1940s and 1970s.

Horizontal pin-poles that cross the Minnesota River behind the wash plant were put in place in the 1980s. This line segment carries 100% of the city of New Ulm’s energy into the system. These poles were heavily preyed upon by woodpeckers and were the initial reason for starting this project.

The main purpose of the plan was to replace the wood poles with steel poles. A few wooden distribution poles will remain on the line, but these poles can be maintained by Utilities.

The total construction for this project was $1,380,972.29.

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The PUC authorized public utility staff to purchase Allied Radio Matrix Emergency Response (ARMER) radios for $30,903.32.

Utilities Director Kris Manderfeld said the public utilities currently use analog radios and are in the process of updating them to digital radios. Some of the analog radios that are used no longer have replacement parts.

Currently, the City of New Ulm is already on the ARMER system. According to Manderfeld, it was in the itilities department’s best interest to be on the same system. The city council recently approved the purchase of ARMER radios for the fire and police department.

Motorola is offering a discount of 5% on all merchandise for large volume purchases in addition to the discount off the list price. Brown County will act as the fiscal agent which will permit all local government units in the county to include their purchases into one large purchase, which in turn allows the utility department to take advantage of the discount.

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The replacement of the flat roof on the west end of the Water Treatment Plant was approved at $39,250.

The flat roof on the west end is 28 years old and has had only minor repairs over that period. Now there are multiple leaks in the roofing staff are requesting a replacement.

Two quotes were obtained from local companies: Laraway Roofing and GSM. Upon review of the quotes, it has been determined that both companies provide similar work, materials, and warranty, with the lower proposal being $39,250 from GSM.

This project was included in the 2021 budget at a $40,000 estimate.