Sunday was such a beautiful day. The sky was clear. No wind. The temperature was perfect. Cathy and I took advantage of the day and went on a little retreat – right here in Weiser. We loaded up lawn chairs and the dog and went down to the boat ramp on Mortimer’s Island and just hung out for a couple of hours. The water was calm. A woodpecker was rapping his head against a tree. Fish were jumping. The sun was warm. It was a perfect place to just sit and read for a while. Weiser really is a great place!

That memory is so nice, I’m not sure I want to break it and get down to business. Oh Well, here goes. Now on to City business.

I’d like to give a shout out to Mackenzie Kissell in the Wastewater Department. You see, the State wastewater association had their annual conference recently and Mackenzie received recognition as the Wastewater Specialist of the Year! This is quite an achievement for someone who has only been in the business for three years! Good JOB Mac! And thank you for your service!

On another note, the rebuild of the three-block section of E. Commercial between State Street and E. 3rd Street has begun this week. Please avoid overuse of this section of road during the construction process, UNLESS you are patronizing the businesses in this area. They DO need your support. Road construction, which is essential, is always hard on the businesses located on those roads, so please support them during this difficult period.

Speaking of construction, the new facilities are just about completed in Memorial Park. Electrical work will be added to the new covered gathering area. The fire pits should now be completed. The roofing material for the gazebo over the seating area next to the playground should be here. It’s all coming together and looks very nice even if I do say so myself. Much of this work has been done by the Street Department. The gazebo, which I understand was tricky to build, was constructed by the City’s building inspector, Dave Loos, who showed why he has the skills to be the building inspector. Way to go Dave! You are greatly appreciated!

Since we are talking about Memorial Park, you may be in for a surprise this fall when you drive up above the football field on the hill. You know those white mismatched bollards that kept you from driving off down the hill. Well, they are no longer there. 

You see the City approached the LOR Foundation for a grant to construct a sidewalk along the top of the hill as part of an overall goal to eventually have sidewalk completely encircle Memorial Park. Taking the bollards out were the first step. The construction company who will be completing the sidewalk project from the High School to Downtown will install the section at the top of the hill also. Since they will be here and already set up so to speak, there was a price break that the City was able to take advantage of. Win-Win. THANK YOU, LOR Foundation!

While we are in Memorial Park, we are starting to experience people using motorized bikes, e-bikes, motorized scooters, etc. in the parks, on the sidewalks as well as the grass. Please do not use motorized anything on the grass or the sidewalks. The parks are for walking and other slower forms of recreation making it dangerous when the higher speeds of motorized units are added to the mix. Signs have been purchased and are being posted in the parks to remind people. So please, use motorized forms of transportation or sport in the streets or other appropriate locations. 

Well, that’s it for this week! Weiser really is a great place to live, work, and play!