NORWAY — Norway will try out new City Hall office hours starting June 1.

Norway City Hall will be open 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. from after Memorial Day until the Fourth of July. The current office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Requests to change office hours have been brought before past city councils, though each had been denied as members wanted to maintain a 5 p.m. closing time, City Manager Ray Anderson said. But with the ability to pay bills online or by drop box, traffic between 4 and 5 p.m. has been minimal.

The council Monday approved the change on a trial basis. If made permanent, it would bring Norway in line with other local municipalities and townships.

Kingsford City Hall is open to the public from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. while Iron Mountain City Hall is open from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. In Breitung Township, the Quinnesec offices are open from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., though lobby doors are locked at 12:30 p.m. due to staffing shortages and the ongoing pandemic.

In other business, the council:

— Approved the purchase of $65,077 worth of equipment and materials to continue the Forest Drive and Viking Lane electrical distribution upgrade. The project aims to improve electrical reliability in the area by installing an underground feed in the rear easement between Viking and Forest.

— Contracted Kleiman Pump and Well Drilling of Iron Mountain to replace pumping hardware for well site pump no. 3 at a cost not to exceed $36,476. The pump recently failed due to multiple outages in the system created by lightning strikes, fallen tree limbs, and a turkey electrocuted when it flew into the power lines running to the pump.

— Hired UP International Trucks Inc. to repair a city garbage truck at a cost not to exceed $2,917.

— Authorized the purchase of an equipment lift from Mohawk Lifts of Amsterdam, N.Y., at a cost not to exceed $17,461 and concrete work from Terrazzo Creations and Renewal of Iron Mountain for $7,600 in order to replace a failed equipment hoist at the Norway Department of Public Works.

— Approved the use of Safetyskills online safety training program for an annual price not to exceed $1,990. The Safetyskills program provides access to more than 700 safety and human resources courses and includes 30 seats for full-time city employees and 10 seasonal employees.

— Permitted Dickinson Trail Network to construct non-motorized trails on city property in and around Norway Hill north of Sixteenth Avenue and east of Strawberry Lake, starting at the north parking lot.

At its April 5 meeting, the council:

— Approved a change order request to the Sturgeon Falls Hydroelectric Facility Unit 4 generator repair project at a cost not to exceed $10,000. The change order will pay for the reconfiguration of the unit’s stabilizer arms to avoid recurring repairs. The total project cost is not to exceed $99,350. Council members Bret Kraemer and Scott Popp voted against the motion, saying repairs should be considered preventative maintenance.

— Authorized $6,714 for the purchase of new overhead doors for the east and west sides of the hydroelectric plant from Delta Door Company in Gladstone. The purchase is a budgeted item.

— Accepted a $15,000 offer to purchase lot no. 1 of the Oak Crest subdivision pursuant to city sale policy.

— Appointed Laura Hyde-Smith to the Norway Planning Commission with a term expiring in December 2023.

— Approved special event applications for the annual citywide garage sale on May 22 and the Lion’s Club picnic at Marion Park on July 11.

— Passed a resolution authorizing Mayor Candy Brew and City Clerk Trisha Plante to execute a memorandum of understanding between the city and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 906 regarding the conditions for Water Foreman Dave Bal’s acceptance in the IBEW Supervisor’s Union as the water supervisor for the Department of Public Works.