This week a topic came to the forefront in the city council meeting and in the finance committee. The city is in dire need of new computer equipment. While not disputing the need for equipment, it never fails to amaze me how creative the council can be in finding money for those projects they think are important.
Another subject which came up is the Northlands sewer project. The 20 or so citizens in the Northlands have state of the art water infrastructure and access to natural gas. Why should they have a state of the art sewer system guaranteed by the city? They seem to be priority number one on any council agenda.
Shouldn't it be a priority to set up a plan to refurbish the aging pipes and dilapidated streets in Walsenburg? The city is where the taxpayers live who have to deal with all the aging infrastructure problems. A couple of recent examples of these problems were the defective fire hydrants discovered during the February 6th and 7th fires in the city.
A five year plan for improvements is a condition of the city ordinance making capital improvement funds available for sewer and water projects.(City of Walsenburg ordinance 1015 dated 12/10/12) To my knowledge, this has never been done. To his credit, Mayor Eccher has stated that he is focusing on replacing the gas transmission line from Trinidad and the fresh water line from LaVeta. That is a start in the right direction.
It is not too much to ask for basic services when you pay above average utility bills. These basic priorities should be on the table at every finance committee and city council meeting until some results are seen.
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