In collaboration with Mayor Jones
Time to catch up with our city Mayor, Sandra Jones. With many water concerns lately, I was stirred to meet with our Mayor, Sandra Jones. For those who are not aware, or may have moved here recently, the city of Roundup has been working towards better water for the city of Roundup, a project that has taken many years to bring to fruition, and is still in process. Federal Authorization was given to The Central Montana Regional Water Authority for the project in 2020. The federal appropriation of funds for the project was included in the bi-partisan Infrastructure bill that was passed and signed by President Biden in 2021. The details of pipe planning routes and easements are currently being done for phase 2 of the project. We already have bids and the contracts to begin the construction of phase one. Phase One, is to get water to Harlowton. Phase two will be bringing the water to Roundup. The estimated timeline for the new water source for the city of Roundup should be within the next three years.
There are three funds that have to be obtained for the completed water project. There has to be a local match, federal match, and a state match for the funding. All of these funding sources are coming together. We are still securing the state funds. "We have done all of this without having to raise rates.
However, the city did implement a fifteen-dollar surcharge to help pay down debt, because of the requirement to have matching funds for the water main replacement infrastructure projects. This surcharge is helping to pay down the debt as well as qualifying us for more grant money for each phase of the project, in fact, we have been able to double our grant because of that capital surcharge, so it really has helped to have it because it shows that the community has skin in the game, and it has positioned us to get it done sooner." States Mayor Jones. The current source of water will cease to be used once the new water system comes into the city. The new water will be gravity fed, and will build pressure as it comes through the pipeline to Roundup. It will actually have to be slowed down to supply us, so hopefully water pressure will never be an issue.
In other city news, there are many other city planning and updates that are being worked on. Due to the Infrastructure bill, there are funds available for local projects through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The mayor states that many water, sewer, and broadband projects are being funded through the ARPA funds. The bi-partisan infrastructure bill has helped municipalities across the nation with various water projects.
Cares Act money came to Musselshell County for essential workers due to the Covid pandemic. The City received no appropriation of these funds. However, the county entities did agree to fund the digital speed limit signs from these funds. During the Covid pandemic, digital infrastructure updates were allocated to the city for digital meetings. CARES act money was implemented for those technical updates, which will continue to be used in the future.
Other things happening in the city; There will be a new restroom built at the city park which will help with the sports tournaments and RIDE events. However, the RIDE event has become so huge that the city will still need porta-potties. The City of Roundup now has a branding book. This is not a book of ranch brands like you may think, but rather a branding of Roundup as a city. Morgan Belveal worked with Roundup Community Partners to create a brand for the city of Roundup, and a website with the brand. This is to incentivize business owners to look at the aesthetic of the buildings and to have them compatible with each other. The city is also an affiliate member with AARP, which means we are an age friendly community. With this affiliation, the Roundup Community Partners were able to get a grant to put concrete benches along Main Street in front of businesses. These benches will have the signs with the logo AARP, RCP, and other advertisements on them for our town. The mayor states that the benches will be placed when the weather is conducive to get them set.
The mayor stresses that it is important for the public to understand that the county and the city work together. It is important for the public tax payer to know the different responsibilities, financial obligations, and governing bodies, that the entities have. The city has an interlocal agreement for law enforcement, court services, Justice of Peace, who also serves as the city judge, and the airport. There are a lot of things that are pertaining to the city of Roundup that are shared with the county, and there are some things that are only belonging to the county.
Uniqueness of city government vs. county government
City municipality is responsible for the city streets, city water, utilities, service for garbage pickup, city lights, park maintenance, but also must have law enforcement, and emergency services in place to be an incorporated city which costs money. The city currently operates with primarily the same allocation and value of mills that it had thirteen years ago. This means that the city has been on a very tight budget that has not increased in spite of inflation, and the rising cost of expenses.
The county must maintain roads, bridges, cemeteries, fairgrounds, and shared emergency services withing their budget. However, it is important for the taxpayer to remember that the city is part of the county and is taxed accordingly as all other county residents.
The City of Roundup is currently working on getting the snow removal for Main Street to be moved to the center of the street. This is for the safety of people getting in and out of their cars by the sidewalks, and to help the business owners. Also, the City of Roundup is an affiliate member of the Montana Main Street Program and as a member, the mayor provides a quarterly report. This report includes growth and economic information, as well as volunteer hours. She likes to keep a handle on how many businesses we have, and how we are growing. Roundup also has a TIF district, (tax increment finance district) for blighted areas in town. This is a program that was started nearly four years ago, but hasn't gotten any money yet because the city has to meet the tax quota from 2018 and increase it before any money goes into the district. She explains that once that happens, the city can disburse some of that money. The mayor would also like to do a survey of sidewalk assessment of business that are not located on Main Street. This would show what repairs are needed, and she hopes to work towards getting an AARP grant for some of that work.
Much is being done, and there is plenty more to keep the city government busy. These are the some of the unseen parts of what makes Roundup run smoothly.
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