Addendum to airport hanger approved

The Hot Springs County Commissioners approved an addendum to a hangar lease at the airport, which allows a small portion of land to be added to a lease in order to place a propane tank on the property.

According to FBO Nate Messenger, there were 140 operations at the airport during the month of May, including two air ambulances. He indicated fuel sales are up quite a bit from April, as well.

A new seal coat for the runway is expected to begin sometime toward the middle of this month. Once the seal coat is complete, new paint will be added as well. Messenger believes this should only take about three days to finish.

A few ideas were tossed around between the commissioners and Messenger as to what to do with the CARES Act funding ($20,000) that was received due to the pandemic.

Some of those ideas included a wider mower for the smaller tractor, a culvert in one of the drainage ditches along the fence and insulation in the ceiling of the FBO building between the office and the shop. If they keep the project small they can use the funds without having to go through the FAA, so they’re trying to keep it simple.

Road and Bridge Supervisor Dave Schlager informed the commissioners one of his employees has tested positive for COVID-19. At this time, the employee is quarantined at home and will continue to be checked until he is given the go ahead to return to work by his physician.

Schlager also said he would like to get some more cold mix for patching. He has been checking with the various construction companies to get the best price.

One of the compressors failed that handles the cooling at the Law Enforcement Center, but Maintenance Supervisor Anthony Fruciano said he was able to get it back to about 95-percent.

A little excitement was had when a heat pump literally blew up in the treasurer’s office. There was no fire, but lots of smoke. Fruciano said it was caused by a failed seam created by acid buildup within the pump, so it is going to have to be replaced.

There is a $5,000 deductible through the insurance, so it would be $5,000 to $6,000 to replace. The pump was installed by Trane six years ago. Fruciano said he has worked around it for now, but will order a new unit as soon as possible.

A bid was accepted from Redd Roofing for $256,285 for replacement of the roof at the county library. The work should start within the next couple weeks.