Wastewater treatment plant 90 percent done
DRYING BED A heavy duty caterpillar picks up dirt at the new wastewater site just outside of Conrad. This shows the drying bed under-drain collection pipe being made ready for installation. Courtesy of Bill Strong-M&M
Crews have continued working on exterior portions of the construction, such as piping and manhole installation in an effort to get as much done as possible before the cold weather sets in, says Mayor John Shevlin.
The Conrad Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade increased the average flow the plant can handle by .50 million gallons a day.
The one-year construction project is being done by Dick Anderson Construction out of Great Falls.
The upgrade at the plant includes a new main treatment building to house the plant headwork’s including grit removal and fine screening, ultraviolet disinfection, a rotary drum thickener for solids handling, process aeration equipment, an office/laboratory, a bathroom, utility room, and a new truck storage bat.
In addition, the upgrades include Parshall flumes for influent and effluent flow measurement; an activated sludge system including an earthen basin with a floating lateral fine bubble aeration system; a recycle activated sludge (RAS) system; and two new clarifiers for secondary clarification; an earthen basin aerobic digester with floating aspirating jet aerators, new sludge drying beds, and all associated plant piping and miscellaneous work.
Currently the aeration basin and aerobic digesters are completely excavated and have been rough graded. Other work such as fine grading of the side berms (a strip of ground along a dike) and placement of the bedding material will be completed before the membrane liner and process equipment is installed.
Concrete work on the two secondary clarifiers is just about complete and the outside of the tanks are in the process of being backfilled.
Grout placement on the interior slab will be completed after the clarifier equipment is installed. The installation of this equipment is scheduled to take place within the next two months.
The sludge drying beds concrete divider walls have been placed and backfilled; and the under drain pipe installation is nearly complete.
Once the drying beds have been completely backfilled and the sub grade has been compacted, a three inch lift of asphalt will be placed to allow for easy removal of the dried sludge.
The main treatment building has begun to take shape with the placement of the concrete base slab taking place last week.
The metal building materials are stored onsite and the erection of the building is expected to begin next week.
With the completion of this building, work will be able to progress on the interior pipe and equipment installation when the weather stands in the way of outside construction activities.
Editor’s note: This story was prepared for the I-O by Neal LeVang. The photograph was furnished by Bill Stong, Inspector for the project. Both work for Morrison Maierle, Inc out of Helena, the engineering firm for the project.
Shevlin seeks 2nd term as mayor on write-in
By Buck Traxler, I-O Editor
Incumbent Mayor John Shevlin is seeking a second term as the city father.
Originally he planned to step aside after one term and spend more time with his family, in particular his grandchildren.
However, it appeared that no one was going to step up and take the reins as mayor, the sign-up period had passed, so at the urging of many folks, Shevlin declared himself an official write-in candidate.
Sixty-four years ago, he entered the world in Great Falls and was raised in Miles City where he graduated from high school and attended Miles City Community College.
He served for two years in the Navy Reserve and finally retired from Buttrey Foods after 30 years of service. Today he owns and operates Liberty Safes of Conrad.
Shevlin has been active with the Boy Scouts of America since 1968. He achieved the rank of Eagle Scout and has been awarded the Silver Beaver award, the highest honor given for volunteer service. He has served for two years as the BSA Council Commissioner, District Commissioner for four years and Council Popcorn Chairman for four years.
In addition he is a member of the Knights of Columbus and while a member of the Jaycees he won a number of awards. He is a certified scuba diver and has volunteered his instructor skills to train Search and Rescue teams.
Besides scuba diving, he likes car and coin collecting, trap shooting, hunting, collecting antiques and spending time with his family, “especially my grandchildren,” he adds.
Shevlin has been the Mayor of Conrad for the past 46 months.
While serving in that capacity, he has been the chairman of the Tri-City Interlocal and the Northern Transit Interlocal board.
He is an active member and serves on the board of the Pondera Historical Association and the board of the Pondera Shooting Sports Club.
He has also been able to attend all the mayor’s conferences, Montana League of Cities and Towns meetings and rural water conventions.
Asked about his qualifications for the office, He noted, “With 35 years in the retail grocery business, five years with Safeway and 30 with Buttrey Foods, I have developed outstanding leadership skills with employees and with the public.”
He sees the biggest problem with Conrad (and the county), “is a lack of tax base. We will continue to work to attract green businesses to our area.”
Shevlin goes on to add, “We feel that our progressive positioning of public utilities, water and sewer will make Conrad an attractive place for small businesses.”
In making a prediction, the mayor commented that “before long water will be worth more than land.”
He and his wife Penny have been married for 43 years. They have two sons and five grandchildren.
In closing he said, “I look forward to another team as mayor of Conrad.”
Incumbent Mayor John Shevlin is seeking a second term as the city father.Originally he planned to step aside after one term and spend more time with his family, in particular his grandchildren.
However, it appeared that no one was going to step up and take the reins as mayor, the sign-up period had passed, so at the urging of many folks, Shevlin declared himself an official write-in candidate.
Sixty-four years ago, he entered the world in Great Falls and was raised in Miles City where he graduated from high school and attended Miles City Community College.
He served for two years in the Navy Reserve and finally retired from Buttrey Foods after 30 years of service. Today he owns and operates Liberty Safes of Conrad.
Shevlin has been active with the Boy Scouts of America since 1968. He achieved the rank of Eagle Scout and has been awarded the Silver Beaver award, the highest honor given for volunteer service. He has served for two years as the BSA Council Commissioner, District Commissioner for four years and Council Popcorn Chairman for four years.
In addition he is a member of the Knights of Columbus and while a member of the Jaycees he won a number of awards. He is a certified scuba diver and has volunteered his instructor skills to train Search and Rescue teams.
Besides scuba diving, he likes car and coin collecting, trap shooting, hunting, collecting antiques and spending time with his family, “especially my grandchildren,” he adds.
Shevlin has been the Mayor of Conrad for the past 46 months.
While serving in that capacity, he has been the chairman of the Tri-City Interlocal and the Northern Transit Interlocal board.
He is an active member and serves on the board of the Pondera Historical Association and the board of the Pondera Shooting Sports Club.
He has also been able to attend all the mayor’s conferences, Montana League of Cities and Towns meetings and rural water conventions.
Asked about his qualifications for the office, He noted, “With 35 years in the retail grocery business, five years with Safeway and 30 with Buttrey Foods, I have developed outstanding leadership skills with employees and with the public.”
He sees the biggest problem with Conrad (and the county), “is a lack of tax base. We will continue to work to attract green businesses to our area.”
Shevlin goes on to add, “We feel that our progressive positioning of public utilities, water and sewer will make Conrad an attractive place for small businesses.”
In making a prediction, the mayor commented that “before long water will be worth more than land.”
He and his wife Penny have been married for 43 years. They have two sons and five grandchildren.
In closing he said, “I look forward to another team as mayor of Conrad.”
Local riders take top honors at races
FIRST PLACE Justin Prewett sails through the air on his ATV at a meet in Bozeman earlier this racing season. Prewett captured first place overall in the ATV Junior Class. Photo courtesy of Julie Prewett
The top local racers on the year were Justin Prewett 1st; Tanner Dyer 2nd place for the ATV Pro Class, Austin Prewett 1st place and Ajay Dyer in 3rd place ATV Junior Class.
In addition, over 300 members of the HCMA voted and selected the Rocky Mountain Ricers Club (Conrad) the “Track of the Year.”
Some towns held two-day events with classes ranging from 50cc Peewee bikes to Vet 50+ classes, vintage Pro bikes and three ATV classes.
The day starts with a train whistle at 6:45 a.m. letting riders know they need to attend a riders’ meeting.
Then there is a practice for all 29 race classes with the race motos starting right after the practices.
Each racer competes in two race motos a day. Pro classes have 18-minute motos, Intermediate classes are 15-mnutes, the women’s class is 12 minutes, the junior ABC and Peewee classes are 10-minutes.
There were exciting battles for racers to place in and with the other riders it was fun to watch.
With the bermed corners, attacking whoop sections, the launching off hills, catching air off tabletops, double and triple and step-up jumps, there were exciting races to view.
All year long residents joined in their area races and did well in their respective class.
Editor’s note: This article and photos were done and submitted by Julie Prewett.