By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
Chick-fil-A has submitted an application to the city of Hays for economic incentives, requesting industrial revenue bonds (IRBs) to obtain a sales tax exemption for all purchases related to the construction of their planned new restaurant at 3404 Vine.
Once construction is complete, the exemption certificate will expire, and all sales and purchases at the location will be subject to regular sales tax collection.
City commissioners will hear about the project at their Thursday work session.
Sewer cleaning and inspection
A bid for the 2026 sanitary sewer cleaning and inspection will be presented to Hays city commissioners during Thursday's work session.
The city maintains about 115 miles of sanitary sewer lines and cleans and inspects about 20 miles of them each year.
This year's project covers northeast Hays, which was last treated in 2021.
The low bid was from Dakota Municipal Solutions, Moorhead, Minn., for $133,028. The budgeted amount was $150,000. The remaining $17,000 would be used for heavier cleaning, tap intrusion removal, root removal and patching where needed.
Centrifuge maintenance
Jeff Crispin, director of water resources, will also present a low bid for a 10,000-hour maintenance service of the centrifuge at the Water Reclamation and Reuse Facility.
The bid of $48,600 from the authorized manufacturer representative is below the $50,000 budget.
Setbacks for carports
Current regulations require a 5-foot side yard setback for all accessory structures, including carports. Following recent variance requests, the Hays Area Planning Commission is recommending reducing the side yard setback for carports from 5 feet to 3 feet.
Fire, property maintenance, electrical code updates
The city periodically updates its building codes to account for advancements in structural integrity, fire and life safety, property maintenance, and electrical safety. They were last updated in 2017.
The complete March 19 agenda is available here.
The work session begins at 4 p.m. in Hays City Hall, 1507 Main.