by Carol Dunn
LA VETA-At its September 1 meeting, the La Veta Town Board selected Genova Construction of Pueblo to erect its steel building at the water treatment plant. Genova submitted an all-inclusive bid of $70,715. The other bid, from Topar Steel Erectors, was $88,295. Work is expected to begin in about a week and will take 60 days from start to finish. Trustee Tracy Webb told the audience that Genova’s references were checked out and that they recently completed work for the City of Walsenburg. The Board also approved $14,900 for Topar Steel Erectors to retrofit the building to meet State Health Department and Department of Homeland Security regulations.
A commercial development permit application from Harold Andreatta was accepted, and a public hearing was set for September 15 at 6:45 pm. Andreatta’s application is for parking heavy equipment and private vehicles at 306 Pinkerton Road.
Todd Coleman came before the Board to voice his concern about 20 dump loads of fill that have been dumped by the Town along West Ryus. Mayor Mickey Schmidt explained that the fill will be contoured to stabilize a hill cut that has been eroding. “The project isn’t finished yet,” he said.
Mayor Schmidt said the Town Board will be revisiting an old agreement with the La Veta Fire Protection District. As part of its ISO rating process, the Fire District needs to specify maintenance procedures for the fire hydrants in town. The agreement will spell out who is responsible for which maintenance items.
The Board approved a setback variance for Jon Keeling, who needs a building permit to reroof and reskin a building at 103 Pine St.
Tree Board Chair Barb Kowalik discussed several tree issues with the Board. The roots of the large trees along Main Street are starting to force the concrete sidewalk to buckle in places. Mayor Pro-Tem Dawn Blanken suggested a meeting to discuss options among the Tree Board, Colorado State Forest Service Forester C.K. Morey, and Robert Ingoldby, who does maintenance and removal work on the Town’s trees.
The Board approved closure of Main Street on October 2 from 2:30-3:30 for the homecoming parade.
