Washington Evening Journal
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Sewer and downtown projects advance in Fairfield in 2020
Andy Hallman
Dec. 30, 2020 12:00 am, Updated: Dec. 30, 2020 10:40 am
FAIRFIELD - 2020 was a year full of ironies for the city of Fairfield.
The arrival of the coronavirus in the spring did not stop the city from completing a number of projects. One of those was remodeling City Hall, which involved building a new entrance, replacing the front desks, remodeling the bathrooms and adding a ramp to the council chambers.
The irony of this renovation is that it occurred during a year when City Hall had to be closed for a period of time to walk-in traffic due to the virus. The building closed in May, reopened in June, and closed again in November when cases spiked locally.
Fairfield City Administrator Aaron Kooiker said City Hall has remained close since then, but he expects it to reopen around the time of the first council meeting in January.
One of the major projects of 2020 was the installation of new sewer on the east side of town, from Lamson Woods on the south side to Maharishi International University on the north. Kooiker said he was pleased with the progress on that construction and noted most of the line is in. The project is known as Step II, with Step I referring to the work already done on the line between Lamson Woods and the wastewater treatment plant south of town.
The wastewater treatment plant was another story of 2020. Reconstructing the plant has been a few years in the making, but now it is done.
'Everything at the plant was redone. It's almost like a completely new facility,” Kooiker said.
Fairfield's downtown was the focus of several changes in 2020. The area got 55 new light poles, replacing the old ones that were deteriorating at the base and creating a safety hazard. The light bulbs themselves were replaced with light-emitting diodes (LED), which Kooiker said are brighter and save the city money.
'It's now a lot brighter downtown. You can see your way around,” Kooiker said.
The council approved a plan to install eight picnic tables in Central Park, on a close 4-3 vote among the council members. The council had previously narrowly rejected the idea of picnic tables in the park when the measure fell on a 4-3 vote in 2017. The coronavirus prompted more people to seek outdoor dining options, since dining indoors was often not an option, and many gathered in Central Park. Beginning next year, they will have permanent tables and chairs, including handicap accessible tables, for a more enjoyable culinary experience.
In another move to improve the quality of life in the downtown, the council relaxed its parking regulations in the area. Before passage of the most recent ordinance in 2020, downtown residents had to move their cars off the square every night. The new ordinance allows them to park around the square all the time, with a few exceptions such as on the last Thursday of the month in summer to accommodate street sweeping, or during a snow emergency.
This shows a section of forest cleared between Lamson Woods and Burlington Avenue on the east side of Fairfield where new sanitary sewer pipe was laid in 2020. (Andy Hallman/The Union)
The Fairfield City Council meets at City Hall. The council has added desks to the chamber in 2020 to ensure proper social distancing. Pictured are, clockwise from front, council members Martha Rasmussen, Doug Flournoy, Paul Gandy, Judy Ham, Mayor Connie Boyer, Tom Twohill, Katy Anderson, City Administrator Aaron Kooiker and Michael Halley. (Photo courtesy of Fairfield Media Center).
This is an artist's rendering of the permanent picnic tables that the Fairfield City Council voted to install in Central Park. (Image courtesy of Michael Halley)