City Calls Special Meeting for Animal Shelter, New Vehicles

The Sallisaw Board of City Commissioners will hold a meeting at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday at City Hall to discuss building a new animal shelter, and other items. Bids for the animal shelter were received during the board's regular meeting on March 9, and turned over to the city staff for review. B&B Welding of Sallisaw submitted the low bid of $125,158.88 for construction of the shelter.

According to the special meeting agenda, the city staff, after review of the low bid, is recommending it be awarded to the low bidder with a supplemental $25,158.88 from the capital improvement contingency to cover the cost of the contract, and another $10,000 to allow city personnel to construct kennels and provide other basic needs of the shelter, which would include a service counter. A temporary shelter is now set up Eppler Road, where the new shelter is to be located, after it was determined the old shelter building was in such bad shape it was dangerous. City workers and police officers built the temporary shelter at the site, in an old building, after the old building was vacated so that the city could continue proper animal control.

Also on the agenda are the purchase or lease-purchase of various vehicles, including a new grass fire unit for the fire department, from money from a half-cent sales tax for all county fire departments. The purchase will allow one vehicle to be dedicated to medical calls. The fire department is making an average of 19 medical calls a month. The agenda also includes the lease-purchase of four 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe Police Package vehicles and one 2015 Chevrolet LT 4WD pickup for the police department, at a cost of $145,883 which is in the city's budget. The naming of a temporary city manager is also on the agenda. The temporary city manager will fill the gap between the retirement of City Manager Bill Baker on April 1 and the arrival of new City Manager Clayton E. Lucas II on May 4. 

Sally Maxwell, Senior News Director

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