Kellogg wins award for sewer project

KELLOGG — The Association of Idaho Cities (AIC) recognized the City of Kellogg with a City Achievement Award on June 21 during the 71st AIC annual conference in Boise last month.

The City of Kellogg earned a City Achievement Award in the Public Works & Transportation Category for its Sewer & Road Infrastructure Project — which is a $32 million sewer and road rehabilitation project that leveraged funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, USDA Rural Development and the Idaho Department of Commerce.

Getting recognized for this award took a lot of hard work and a solid project overview, which Kellogg city clerk Nila Jurkovich undertook in hopes of surprising Kellogg mayor Mac Pooler.

“Nila took this on as her own project and it definitely was a fun surprise for us,” Pooler said. “She put together a really good break down of the work that we are doing and I’m happy that she did it.”

The project itself has been a long and arduous process that has tested the patience of Kellogg residents and city officials, but the AIC was impressed that such a small community had undertaken such a huge responsibility and done it successfully, which is why Kellogg was given the award.

Kellogg city officials also had the foresight to make sure that their plans included as much infrastructure work as possible, and coordinated with the other agencies to make sure that they were getting the best deal possible for their residents.

Of course, none of it could have happened without the residents of Kellogg voting in favor of the sewer bond that they passed four years ago.

“For us to putting on a project of such magnitude is really impressive,” Pooler said. “Voting ‘Yes’ on the sewer bond really opened the door for us to get in there and do a lot of upgrading to the city’s infrastructure.”

And while a project of this magnitude has the potential to be one of the biggest parts of Pooler’s legacy as mayor, he isn’t taking the credit for it.

“Winning this award is really an honor,” he said. “But this is for the residents who have been workable and patient, the contractors who are working as hard and as quickly as possible, and the engineers who put the plans together. This project is an example of what can be done when a lot of people work together.”

The City Achievement Awards recognize the work of cities around Idaho that have implemented pioneering approaches to improve quality of life, address community challenges, and enhance service delivery in cost-effective ways.

This year, awards were given in six categories: Community Engagement, Economic & Community Development, Parks & Recreation, Public Safety, Public Works & Transportation, and Youth & Youth Council.

The Association of Idaho Cities was formed in 1947 and is a nonpartisan, nonprofit corporation organized to serve Idaho’s 200 incorporated cities.

AIC influences policies and provides education, training and technical assistance to strengthen the ability of city elected officials and staff to serve their communities.