Tampa Bay Water reports $22.4 million in completed construction and $525 million upcoming projects

Rick Menzies, construction manager, told the board Tampa Bay Water completed three construction projects since February — roof and structural repairs at the desalination facility, a new seawater intake and pump station at TECO's Big Bend plant, and a transformer at the Cypress Creek lab/administration building — with combined construction costs of $22.4 million, about 4.5% under board‑approved contract amounts. He said eight projects are now under active construction with a combined budget of just under $29 million and provided status updates on wellfield wells, pump station upgrades, ozone generator replacements, variable frequency drive retrofits, and the IT data center upgrades. Looking ahead, Menzies said nine additional construction projects are planned to begin in fiscal year 2026 with an estimated construction cost of about $525 million; he identified the surface water treatment plant expansion and the South Hillsboro pipeline together accounting for about $495 million of that total. The board thanked staff for cost control on completed work.