Desert Messenger

30 www.DesertMessenger.com December 18, 2019 GFWC Quartzsite Woman's Club is sponsoring a Blood Drive on Monday January 20th 10:00 am - 2:00 pm at the Community Center. Schedule your appointment to give blood at www.bloodhero.com and pick your site as Quartzsite or call 877-25-VITAL (877-258-4825). Please bring your photo ID and do- nor card, if you have one. Free cho- lesterol testing with every donation. Find the Hero in You and schedule your appointment. One unit of blood that is donated can provide for 3 blood transfu- sions, so, in essence, you are help- ing 3 patients with your one unit (approximately 1 pint) of blood. It is estimated that 80% of the US population will need a blood trans- fusion in their lifetime. The blood you donate at your blood drive is tested, processed and delivered back into our local community hos- pitals to provide for surgery and chemotherapy patients, people who have blood disorders, newborn ba- bies, expectant mothers and - of course - traumatic situations, such as accidents, shootings, etc. Several factors affect our commu- nity blood bank's supply of blood for hospital patients: 1. Donors have moved away or are traveling or working and are unavailable to donate in their com- munities 2. Many donors are deferred due to low iron, dehydration, high or low blood pressure, medications, elevated pulse rate, blood disorders (anemia), or have traveled to re- stricted areas outside of the United States 3. Apathy - "someone else will do- nate, so I don't need to" 4. People assume that they are not eligible to donate due to age or health issues. For instance, dia- betes does not always defer an indi- vidual from donating. Donor requirements: 1. Donors must be at least 17 years of age - ??? (no age limit) and in good health. 2. YOU MUST BRING A PICTURE ID WITH FIRST AND LAST NAME TO THE BLOOD DRIVE 3. Donors must weigh at least 110 pounds (height and weight restric- tions pertain to donors between the age of 17-22. 4. If you received your Tattoo from a shop in AZ it just needs to be healed before you can donate. The at least one year old rule no longer applies. 5. Donors must wait 56 days after their last donation before they are el- igible to donate for a single donation 6. Donors, who gave a double, must wait 112 days after their last donation before they are eligible to donate 7. Expectant mothers cannot do- nate 8. Donors must be in good health i.e., no cold, flu or flu like symptoms 9. Surgery patients are also tem- porarily deferred from donating. Call 1-877-827-4376 for specific in- formation on the wait time between donations. Blood Drive planned for January 20th The Town of Quartzsite held a ribbon cutting Tuesday, December 3, 2019 to celebrate the completion of the upgrades to the waste water treatment plant. In attendance were Quartzsite Mayor Norm Simpson, Quartzsite Town Council Members Starr BearCat, Lynda Goldberg, Steve Schue, and Loretta Warner; Town Manager Jim Ferguson; Katelyn Ward from Con- gressman Paul Gosar's office; USDA's Jeff Hayes & Arizona State Director of USDA Rural Development in Arizona; Mike Krebs, VP of PACE Engi- neering; Dan Jackson, VP of Willdan Financial Services, Dave Burlingham of Jonovich Companies, Mike Byrd of River Septic, LLC and crew. Quartzsite Town Manager, Jim Ferguson, said, "It's been a team effort with all the agencies involved. I want to extend my appreciation to those of you who are part of the governing body. You stepped up, realized what was needed and made the hard decisions. It's about taking care of the future; the next generation; and the health and safety of the community." Mayor Norm Simpson said, "It's taken a long time, but we're finally here. Now we're moving forward with is expansion... into the future!" Groundbreaking on the project took place on Thursday, April 4th, 2019. The Town of Quartzsite had been working to upgrade and expand its sewer system and wastewater treatment plant for almost a decade. Finally the current administration secured funding to upgrade the system and in- crease capacity. On February 19, 2019 during a special meeting with Quartzsite Municipal Property Corporation, Quartzsite Town Council secured refinancing loans and land leases with the US Government through Rural Utilities Service, US Dept. of Agriculture to upgrade the wastewater treatement plant and sewer system. Due to delays from previous administration, construction costs have increased over the years. Back in 2014, former mayor Ed Fos- ter sued his Town regarding his use of mayoral veto, and then proposed a settlement to eliminate the Quartzsite Police Department. He suggested using the money saved to pay for the upgrades and repairs on the Town's water and wastewater systems. Early in 2017, Mike Krebs, VP of PACE Engineering explained the reno- vation designs and took members of the council on a tour of the wastewa- ter treatment facility. He explained the estimated cost of the whole project is $8.1 million. USDA funding includes a grant of around $2.9 million and a Loan of $3.4 million. The WIFA loan was around $1.6 million. Krebs explained that the town's sewer capacity had reached 80% and ADEQ required an expansion. Winter seasonal flows are 300k to 400k GPD (gallons per day) and summer flows are 100k to 200k GPD with storm flows. The proposed capacity would increase the system to 900 GPD. Krebs also explained 15 manholes located in Tyson Wash were compro- mised and could flood during storm events. (Good news, tho! Manhole protection construction was completed during this past summer.) Emmitt Brinkerhoff, Public Works Director, explained if the expansion were not done, the Town would have to put a lot of money into rehabilitat- ing the plant to get back to proper operations. Mayor Norm Simpson said, "The target is not to keep increasing fees, but to be able to have a sustainable project for future growth." During the regular Council Meeting of January 8th, 2019 Dan Jack- son, VP of Willdan Financial Services, who has been the Town's water and wastewater consultants for the past 15 years, explained the history of fi- nancing the project dating back to 2013. Then, an engineering study con- solidated existing complex rate structures and established current rates. In 2014, the Council adopted a Multi-year plan. In 2017, a new rate plan and rate structure was adopted. Water and wastewater rates were increased in May of 2018. Jackson stated, "Without mak- ing these investments in the future of the Town, the quality of services will decline." Willdan said he would not recommend adjusting the wa- ter and wastewater rates at that time; however during the summer, the Town may have to adjust the rate plan if the high usage winter months underperformed. Grant funds are to bring the sewer plant up to Arizona Dept. of Environmen- tal Quality (ADEQ) standards. The Town could face daily fines per vio- lation from ADEQ if not corrected. Last year's Government shutdown complicated deadlines and applica- tion process. The upgrade will eliminate pos- sible sewage overflow during wet weather times and increase capac- ity, allowing for future growth. The Town will take full control of operationing the plant in about two weeks. Ferguson said, "We are still ensuring that all operations are smooth before accepting." For mroe details, contact Quartzsite Town Hall at 928-927-4333. Town holds ribbon cutting for sewer plant

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