City to pay rent until further notice

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Lava Lite remains in storage at the Port of Ephrata until further notice from the design team.

Previously the storage was offered at no fee but due to port growth and demand it is no longer feasible to change nothing.

Effective May 1, the city is to pay $600 per month for storage on a month-to-month basis, Mayor Wayne Hovde said.

Rental agreement will be in place until the design team addresses the city on storage alternatives, he said. It will be two to three weeks before notice is heard from the design team.

Funding for the storage will come out of the Lava Lite budget.

At a previous council meeting it was discussed to leave the materials at the project site. The council was unsure if it was appropriate due to possible theft and weather damage. There was discussion of putting a chain link fence around the perimeter of the site near the corner of Main Avenue East and Canna Street North.

Construction of the 50-foot lamp scheduled for completion last summer is expected to begin summer 2007.