Southgate City Manager Dustin Lent
Impetus is to avoid future leakage risk
By SUE SUCHYTA
Sunday Times Newspapers
SOUTHGATE – The replacement of three 30-year-old fuel tanks at the city’s Department of Public Services yard, deemed uninsurable, was approved, and a bid awarded on June 2 by the City Council.
The project, which involves removing and replacing three underground storage tanks, and reinstalling the fuel pumps, light poles, concrete paving and fuel island, was awarded to TSP Environmental Services of Redford Township and its subcontractor, Kelly Maintenance Co. of Saginaw, which bid $307,003 on the job. The contract includes a 15 percent contingency fee, increasing the amount to $353,054 overall.
Funding for the project is provided through the city’s major and local street funds.
City Manager Dustin Lent said the fuel tanks provide gasoline for city vehicles.
“Currently our tanks are over 30 years old, and to get insurance on these tanks, we are struggling,” he said. “They will not insure tanks that are over 30 years old, so now is the time that we are going to be able to update these in order to have insurance on the tanks.”
City Councilman Mark Farrah said he remembers 30 years ago, when the last set of tanks were replaced.
“We began to have a leaking problem, and we are not in a position where we are leaking at this time,” he said.
Lent confirmed that the existing tanks were not leaking, but said that the tanks had been relined about 10 years ago.
“However, even with them being relined, the insurance company requires them to be replaced,” he said.
Farrah said he remembers the high additional expense which the city incurred 30 years ago when it had to remediate the leakage of fuel from the old tanks.
“Fortunately, we are not there,” he said.