College Station staff outline major CIP projects, including wastewater upgrades, Rock Prairie widening and Thomas Park design

College Station staff gave the City Council a detailed update on the capital improvement program on Jan. 23, describing work under way and near-term plans for major roads, water and wastewater plants, parks and public-safety facilities.

Most urgent: improvements to the Carter Creek wastewater treatment plant. Staff presented a professional services contract for design and construction administration for the Carter Creek wastewater treatment plant improvements (item 7.4 on the agenda). The contract amount listed in the meeting packet was $3,681,493. "This project is really an improvement to meet our discharge limits," Stephen Maldonado, assistant director with the water services department, said, explaining the work will bring aging equipment up to current standards and address reliability and parts-supply problems.

Staff also explained how the 2015 master plan and a 2022 impact-fee update informed sequencing; the city first expanded the Lick Creek plant and is phasing older-plant improvements so the system can continue to meet permit discharge limits. Maldonado said the city holds Brazos Valley Groundwater Conservation District permits for new wells the city plans to drill; those permits expire in three years with an option to renew for an additional two years.

Roads and multimodal projects: Jennifer Kane presented progress on the Rock Prairie Road widening (construction phases completed and a phase expected to finish in February) and a later section funded by the 2022 bond to be built in 2027–28. She described the Lincoln Avenue rehabilitation—from Texas Avenue to University Drive—as under construction, with concrete paving expected in May and roundabouts and a right-turn lane included.

Kane listed other projects in design or construction, including the Krennick Taft replacement, McCullough utility rehabilitation (waterlines largely installed; wastewater work to follow with pipe bursting/trenchless techniques), and a range of park projects funded by the 2022 bond or other funds: Central Park and Bee Creek tennis courts, Bachman Park buildings replacement, Central Park operations shop, Anderson pickleball and futsal courts, and the Veterans Park ball fields now in design under a construction manager-at-risk contract.

Parks: On the Mabel Claire Thomas Park project, the council considered Amendment No. 1 to a design contract for full design and construction administration for the master-plan-based park development. Kane said design would likely take 10–12 months, with construction starting afterward; staff described $3.0 million from the bond and an additional $1.9 million in parks capital funds available but noted the master-plan estimated full buildout near $6 million and that the city may need to phase or add funding. "If we decide to phase it, they will help with the phasing as well and the cost estimates for the different components that would go into the park," Kane said.

Water supply: Kane and Maldonado described a project to drill three new wells (Wells 10, 11 and 12) on city-owned property to increase pumping capacity; they reported test wells and monitoring will inform pump sizing and that early construction packages will be released to meet permit timelines.

Public-safety and facilities: Kane reported Fire Station No. 7 design is nearly complete and that off-site utilities and construction packages will be released in coming months, with a tentative groundbreaking planned in April.

Local contracting and procurement questions: Council members asked about use of local firms under indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) professional-services lists and whether local preference could be added; staff replied that professional services are selected under "best qualified" standards and that local preference is limited for professional services but available in some construction procurement mechanisms.

Bottom line: Staff said the city manages roughly 90–91 active CIP projects and updates a public CIP dashboard biweekly. Several projects are funded through the 2022 bond, CDBG funds (for a restroom/splash pad coordination at Lincoln Center) and other capital funds; Thomas Park and other bond projects will be phased and brought back to council as design and cost details are refined.

Ending: Council approved the Thomas Park design-amendment contract on the regular agenda later in the meeting; staff will return with design details, phasing options and funding recommendations as projects move from design to construction.