First look and it’s good

The Purcell City Council got their first look at the planned improvements and estimated cost of the boat ramp on the north side of Purcell Lake.

And they liked what they saw.

Parks and Recreation Director John Blue gave the council a rundown on the costs during Monday’s council meeting.

The turnkey cost is expected to be $400,000. But with a 75/25 grant pending from the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the city’s share of the project will be just $100,000.

The price breakdown provided by Guernsey, the city’s engineering and architecture consultant, includes $160,000 for parking, $75,000 each for a courtesy dock and fishing dock, $20,000 to reconstruct the existing boat ramp, $60,000 for a prefab public rest room and $10,000 for miscellaneous expenses.

Blue reminded the council that the ODWC’s Boating and Fishing Access Program grants are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

Funding would be available “when it rolls around,” Blue said.

“Seventy-five percent is a good deal,” council member Graham Fishburn said before the council voted unanimously to approve a resolution authorizing the city to apply for the grant.

The council also approved an ordinance raising the age to purchase tobacco and vaping products from 18 to 21.

City manager Dale Bunn told the council that the 2020 Census is complete and Purcell had an “excellent turnout.”

Bunn also said the city has given OEC Fiber a list of customer addresses.

Bunn said during last week’s winter storms, linemen from the city’s Electric Department worked 20 hours straight due to ice accumulations.

After a brief break, they were back on the job making repairs following a wind storm.

All but two linemen then traveled to Tecumseh and worked 12 more hours helping to restore electrical power there.

Meanwhile, workers in the Street Department have started putting up Christmas light displays at the lake for this year’s Lights from the Heart.

The annual display is scheduled to open at 5 p.m. November 25.

Bunn also provided updates on the State Highway 74 and I-35 interchange, Main StreetScape, new hospital construction and marketing plans for the long sidelined Continental Gateway.

The 600-acre site was originally supposed to be a location where goods from Mexico could be checked.

The property, which is inside the city limits, is now owned by the county and commissioners Glen Murray and Wilson Lyles are working to have it certified by the Oklahoma Commerce Department.

In other business, the council:

• declared 607 Jefferson a dilapidated structure;
• denied a tort claim filed by Karen Shields;
• approved meeting dates and holidays for 2021;
• approved a resolution to allow Oklahoma Municipal Assurance Group escrow funds  totaling $20,316.30 to be applied to the city’s Workers’ Compensation policy premium;
• approved a $12,000 budget amendment from the Street and Alley account, and 
• approved a $494,855.05 budget amendment. That money is Purcell’s share of the state’s $1 billion CARES Act allocation.