Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Tekoa City Council is looking ahead to next year with a set of goals which it sets annually.
“Every year we set goals, but we actually make an effort to address them,” said Tekoa Mayor John Jaeger. “We see which ones we can cross off.”
For 2014, items crossed off include ongoing water and sewer projects and paving gravel streets. Projects moving ahead to next year include the attempt to get Main Street designated an arterial so it is eligible for Transportation Improvement Board funds.
“It needs re-paving,” Jaeger said.
Other goals include promoting business.
“Everybody wants to promote business in town, but what are you doing about it?” Jaeger said.
Another short-term goal for 2015 is to chip-seal all gravel roads in town, a project estimated to cost $60,000.
“We think we’ve got the money set aside to do it,” Jaeger said, indicating that lower oil prices make next summer an opportune time.
The funding will come from money raised from the town’s annual street levies.
“Chip-sealing is a cheap way of paving a road,” Jaeger said. “It works really good for little towns.”
Another road project for 2015 will be work on Park Street.
Guardrails and a sidewalk are set to be installed on the section of Tekoa Road, due to a $733,000 Transportation Improvement Board grant.
Announced in December 2013, the money will allow the 2/10-mile section to be made more pedestrian and truck-friendly, as it connects around a curve into the southeast section of town.
The project will run from Howard Street to about 150-feet south of where Park Street becomes Tekoa-Farmington Road.
It will all be within city limits.
The road width will be extended from 18-20 feet wide to 35-feet – including both lanes and shoulders – as deemed by current Washington Department of Transportation design guidelines. The project was held back to this summer in order not to conflict with sewer line work last year.
In the realm of long-term goals for Tekoa, Mayor Jaeger mentioned continuing to work with the Union-Pacific Railroad on potentially acquiring property that could be used for a truck bypass, as well as the effort to get the Empire Theater listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
As far as water and sewer, the pipe-replacement projects of the past several summers are now complete, moving them into the maintenance phase.
Another Tekoa project for the long-term, the wastewater treatment plant, will need temperature-lowering changes, which may mean construction of holding ponds – which are used to lower the temperature of treated water that discharges into Pine Creek.
Tekoa Community Center
The town’s community center also looks to be addressed by Mayor Jaeger and the city council in the coming year.
The city has run the former Jaycees club since 2011, spending town funds to improve the roof, electrical system and installing a new floor. The city of Tekoa has long owned the building, after leasing for many years.
“That has to be decided,” Jaeger said of the community center. “It has to get an identity. Right now it doesn’t have one.”
A main need is to put in handicapped-accessible bathrooms as well as an improved heating system. It’s now heated by a pellet stove.
Jaeger suggested its identity might be tied in to the theater next door, with possible help from Healthy Tekoa Coalition (HTC).
“Maybe between the city, HTC and the theater, we could get something going, as far as the heating system and bathrooms” he said. “Right now it’s hard to rent it. It’s too cold.”
The cost to rent the facility it is $25 in the summer and $40 in the winter.
Another factor is public-private competition. Last year, Cal and Donovan Chase opened the Tekoa Event Center. The father and son also own C&D’s Bar and Grill.
“You hate to have the city competing with a private individual,” said Jaeger. “We’ll still rent it out, but it’s awkward for us.”
“The town owns it. We don’t intend to make money off it,” Jaeger said.
The Tekoa Event Center opened Jan. 1, 2013, after the Chases bought the building, which once held a variety store and an auto parts store. Now, it consists of the Event Center, Tekoa Spirits Beer and Wine – which the Chases also run – Chase Photography and Balloon Biz.
In the Event Center, new bathrooms, a large bar, big screen televisions, a sound system and stage were installed. Since opening, the space has been rented for business meetings, birthday parties, wedding receptions, a memorial and more.
“It’s definitely used for a variety of stuff,” said Donovan Chase.
The cost of rental is $100 for just the room, with the rest on a sliding scale. The Chases always have an employee on site, and depending if the renter wants the event catered, whether they are a non-profit or more, discounts come into play.
“I figure there’s no point in double-dinging people,” Chase said.
As far as any competition with Tekoa Community Center, Chase indicated that he doesn’t see it.
“I don’t view it as an issue,” Chase said, indicating that prospective renters seem to lean toward the event center anyway.
“People know that it brings money and taxes back to Tekoa,” Chase said. “This time of year, (Tekoa Community Center) probably loses money with cost of pellets.”
The Chases’ liquor license, with a catering endorsement, allows them to serve alcohol in the Center. The city has no such license. However, events held at the Community Center can have alcohol, if catered by a company with a license – as the Chases have done in the past.
Donovan and his father Cal bought the former Tekoa Tavern five years ago, modified the building and reopened it as C&D’s.
They are fourth and fifth generation farmers in Tekoa.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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