Planter Work on Front Street
Public Works crews spent time repairing/improving several planters along Front Street. The brick walls that make up the planters get damaged from trees roots, and getting struck by vehicles. Crews disassembled the bricks, and cut back the roots from trees to allow more room for them to grow. The bricks are then reassembled, and secured with new cement. A small palm tree was also installed into the planter that was recently restored at Middle Beach. It is important we perform these tasks before the busy summer season so as to not interfere with our visitors. This is just one of many projects we have planned for the waterfront areas to prepare our town for the busy summer season.
Saltwater Valve Replacement
A main saltwater valve located on Country Club Drive near Eucalyptus Gardens Apartments was in need of replacement. Jeffrey Hernandez used this as a training opportunity for his crew since it was a planned valve replacement, and not an emergency situation. Our vacuum truck was used to excavate and expose the valve & the surrounding area. The non-functioning valve was removed, and the new one was installed. Of course this sounds much easier than it is. A lot of pre-planning is involved to ensure the installation of the new valve goes smoothly, and works properly. Now that the new valve is in place the area will be backfilled and patched.
Trees on Sumner Avenue
Over the years several trees have been damaged, or died, along upper Sumner Avenue. These trees had been removed a while back. Four young trees were donated to us by West Coast Arborists, who performs our annual tree trimming service throughout town. The new trees were planted this week to replace the ones that were removed. Homeowners along Sumner were pleased to see these trees get planted, and are looking forward to watching them grow.
Fuel Tank Removal/Installation
We recently discovered that our 1,000 gallon unleaded fuel storage tank at our maintenance yard was deteriorating from the inside, and needed to be replaced. Replacing the tank became a daunting task due to the many variables involved, and the heavy weight of the old tank. Our large crane can no longer be used due to its age & condition, and our telehandler was too small to lift it. Phil Hernandez, our Harbor Maintenance Lead Worker, used his connections with Connelly-Pacific to make arrangements to have them help us with the use of one of their cranes. Their crane was able to successfully remove the old tank. Our Harbor Maintenance crews then put the new tank in place using our telehandler. A technician from the mainland will be coming out to finish installing the new tank, and connect it to our existing fuel dispensing pump system.