The Saline Reporter
A Heritage Newspaper
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New DPW to open Saturday
Building is named after council member Patrick J. Little
By Sue G. Collins, Special Writer
PUBLISHED: January 18, 2007
Just eight months after construction began on the city's new $4.9 million Patrick J. Little Department of Public Works building, the facility will open Saturday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house for the community.
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Saline Mayor Gretchen Driskell, members of the City Council and city staffers will view the property 10 a.m., followed by a ribbon cutting and open house until 2 p.m.
"We invite the entire community to tour this important new facility," said City Manager Larry Stoever. "City staff and DPW employees will be on hand to explain the operations and provide tours of the building."
Light refreshments will be served.
The new facility includes more than 43,000 square feet at ground level with total storage space of more than 46,000 square feet, including a mezzanine level.
The DPW will be able to store 46 vehicles in the building, plus seasonal equipment. There are offices, locker rooms and training rooms for crew and staff.
A mechanics area and wash bay also have been designed to include two in-ground hoists, one for trucks and one for automobiles, plus a portable hoist. Out-buildings include sheds for salt storage and outdoor storage of water pipes and fittings.
The building honors Little, a three-term mayor and City Council member.
"Pat likes to say when he was first mayor, the city couldn't afford to buy a dump truck," Driskell said.
Little was mayor of Saline from 1991 to 1996.
"He has been a strong leader in our community and helped us get to where we can build a new DPW today," Driskell said.
The former DPW was the last remaining occupant of an aging facility purchased in the mid-1980s that once housed the Saline Police Department and Saline Senior Center.
The decision to replace the facility was driven by a mold problem, unsafe conditions that have seen parts of the building closed off, and inadequate drainage, among a host of other problems that would require major and cost-prohibitive construction and repairs.
The DPW facility is located in the Redies Industrial park at 1234 Tefft Court.
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