HUNTINGTON CITY NEWS
by Bill Stewart,
Huntington City Administrator
Friday, August 31st was declared Ted Ivy Day in Huntington.
At the regular City Council meeting August 31, 2018, Mayor Frank Harris read a proclamation outlining the many years of service to the City, community, and his church in the numerous positions Mr. Ivy has held. The honor, which came as a complete surprise to Mr. Ivy, was witnessed by members of his family. Rev. Dr. Darryl Smith, Mr. Ivy’s pastor for the last 20 years, also spoke and shared memories and stories about his years as the honoree’s pastor. He also told a story from Mr. Ivy’s youth about a certain bell with the initials TI scrawled on it. Mr. Ivy shared his appreciation for the honor, and personal thoughts regarding service to the community and fellow citizens. At 90 years of age, Mr. Ivy has had a positive influence on literally thousands of people through the years, and that influence hasn’t waned as he has become one of our most senior citizens in Huntington. The City Council and City employees are honored to work with this outstanding gentleman, to know him, learn from him, and to love and respect him.
Renovation of Henderson, Durham, Arizona, and 3rd Streets is nearing an end. Some unexpected delays have resulted in completion of work a few weeks later than planned. The contractor has stated that laying the asphalt will begin the first week of September. Contractor for the work is Crockett Construction of Crockett, and the engineering firm used is Schaumburg & Polk, Inc. in Beaumont. The City’s plan is to continue renovation of streets each year until all streets are renovated. The amount of street renovation each year will be determined by the amount of money available to the project. The current project costs almost $328,000.
Renovation of the second phase of the sewer plant has gotten off the ground with the selection of an engineering firm to plan and oversee the work. Schaumburg & Polk, Inc. has also been selected for that project. Since part of the money being used for renovation comes from federal funds, the City must follow federal guidelines for all aspects of the work, beginning with selection of an engineering firm. As required by the guidelines, the City solicited requests for qualifications, otherwise known as RFQs. A total of 19 engineering firms were contacted and asked to submit qualifications as part of the selection process. Federal guidelines state that RFQs must be solicited from women-owned and minority-owned businesses. They also must be identified as meeting classification criteria as small businesses. Of those 19 firms from which qualifications were sought, 14 met the criteria for at least 2 of those, and several met the criteria for all three designations.
Schaumburg & Polk, Inc, also referred to as SPI, will immediately begin working on specific plans for renovation that will not only meet criteria set forth by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, but a waste water treatment plant that will take care of anticipated needs for several years to come. Completion of this phase of the renovation is expected to take approximately one year from the time the work at the plant is begun.
Huntington has a new employee to handle code enforcement and animal control. Tiffani Terry was recently hired to assume the responsibilities of those positions. Ms. Terry grew up in Huntington and knows a vast number of the residents of our city, a fact that will enable her to make a smoother, quicker transition from her service in the US Navy to city employment.
We at City Hall would like to remind you that the 2018-2019 school year has begun. Please remember to watch for students walking or riding bikes each morning and afternoon. Also remember that school buses run throughout the city and outlying areas. When the red flashing lights on a bus are operating, remember to obey the law by stopping, but more importantly, stop for the safety of the students.
October 6th is rapidly approaching, which means it will soon be time for the annual Catfish Festival. As in the past, the Festival will be held at Centennial Park. There is no admission fee for this family-oriented event. Free parking is located across from the Park at the youth softball fields. The event grows each year with more attendees, vendors, foods, entertainment, the catfish cook-off, and family fun.