PRIEST RIVER — City officials have been working with Able Cleanup Technologies and the Department of Environmental Quality to clean up an oil spill at the Happy Agers Senior Center.

What caused the oil spill is undetermined, said city clerk and treasurer Laurel Thomas, but it dates back to February.

“Once we realized we had an issue at the senior center, which is city-owned property, we had to notify DEQ of it,” said Mayor Jim Martin during the Oct. 21 City Council meeting.

Martin said the reason the topic is resurfacing is, in part, because he received a letter on Oct. 8 that the city was going to “come under DEQ scrutiny” because while the initial cleanup had been done, the follow up had never been scheduled or completed.

The other part, he said, was that in talking with the city attorney and insurance agent, it became apparent they had not received proof of insurance from the Happy Agers as is part of the lease agreement.

Otis Angel, president of the Happy Agers, was present at the meeting and said they notified the insurance company some time ago and were assured the city would be sent a copy of the agreement.

“So we thought it was a done deal until I got this letter today (Oct. 21),” Angel said, holding up a letter from the city.

Martin said they still had not received a copy of the policy. Angel also said someone had come by the senior center to take a soil sample, but otherwise the Happy Agers had not heard anything more about the results of the oil spill cleanup.

“I don’t know where it’s at,” Martin said. “Our big thing is we need a copy of the insurance policy and from there we will have that discussion and make sure everything is there, and then we will get in contact with you (the Happy Agers) and the city will sit down and figure out how we move forward.”

Council members also heard from Bob Hatfield, who had requested a spot on the agenda to talk about a memorial project at the park next to the senior center. The project, spearheaded by Councilman Doug Wagner two years ago, was to construct a gazebo in the park as a memorial to Karla Hatfield, a long-time volunteer as food bank director, who served as president of the Happy Agers and Priest River Lioness Club among other positions.

While the gazebo was completed, part of the plan was to put in a sidewalk and some landscaping to access the gazebo from the senior center parking lot, Hatfield said, which has not been done.

“I will take part of the blame on this — I did let it slip,” Martin said. “I was working with one of the city crew members on it, but we have to figure out where the sprinklers are and locate the lines.”

Martin assured Hatfield that the city will start on plans to finish the project in the spring.

Another topic during the Oct. 21 meeting was in regards to maintenance of alleyways. The discussion was brought up through a citizen request, with the primary concern being maintenance for city residents who can only access their properties through an alley.

Currently, the city policy states that rights-of-way adjacent to property not maintained by the city is the responsibility of the property owner whose property abuts the right-of-way. In the case of alleyways, maintenance is required by the adjoining land owners to keep the alleys clear of debris, vehicles, weeds and other obstructions.

“There are a few alleys in town that serve as the primary, or sometimes the only way of accessing somebody’s property,” Martin said.

Martin’s initial suggestion was that if the alley is the sole way of accessing a property, removing the alley designation and making it a street to be maintained by the city. However, Martin said the alleys in town do not meet width and other requirements for a city street designation. If they were to make any changes, it would have to be a separate designation, so the topic was remanded to the city’s administrative committee to discuss in November.

Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.