Lawrence utility approves 70 First Street lift station contract and on-site engineering agreement

The Lawrence City utility approved awarding a contract to Performance Pipelining Inc. for the 70 First Street lift station basin rehabilitation and authorized a professional services agreement with United Consulting for on-site engineering, the board said at its meeting.

The superintendent said the bid submitted by Performance Pipelining Inc. was the lowest responsive and responsible at a total bid price of $805,797.76 and that a $100,000 owner contingency line (line 22 on the bid form) had been inadvertently left blank. "That was inadvertently left blank and we were seeking a $100,000 for that line item," the Superintendent said, adding that the contingency is intended for unforeseen items so the project is not delayed by returning to the board for approval. With the contingency included, the superintendent said the contract total would increase to $905,797.76, which is slightly below the engineer's estimate of $908,210.

The board also approved a professional services agreement with United Consulting for on-site engineering support not to exceed $65,600 as the utility's share. The superintendent said the full agreement covers 360 hours of on-site engineering at a total contract amount of $131,200 and that the $65,600 charge would be split evenly between the utility's water and sewer departments.

Both measures were approved by voice vote after motions and seconds; the meeting record shows the board called for ayes and the chair declared the motions carried. The superintendent said any actual contingency spending would require subsequent board approval and that a change order to incorporate the contingency into the contract will be brought to a future meeting.

There were no account adjustments or ratepayer-dispute remands recorded at the meeting, and no public comments were entered into the record on these items. The board adjourned following the approvals.