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Council committee backs contract negotiation with AECOM for West Gahanna sewer and stormwater study
Summary
Council heard a request to authorize the mayor to enter a design contract with AECOM for the West Gahanna relief sewer project, which will include stormwater, green infrastructure and transportation analyses; an emergency designation was requested to coordinate with Columbia Gas work in the corridor.
City officials presented a request for the mayor to enter into a contract with AECOM to advance design work on the West Gahanna relief sewer project, a broader study the city said will include stormwater drainage evaluation, green infrastructure alternatives and related transportation and mobility work.
Director (Engineering) said the selection followed an RFQ process: “AECOM was selected through the RFQ process, pursuant to the revised code. We had 4 submittals…We down selected to 2 firms, interviewed those 2 firms. The selection committee got that down to AECOM, and then we’ve been in fee negotiation here with AECOM.” The director told council the project work is scoped in response to the March and May 2020 storm events that caused sanitary sewer backups and basement flooding; previous steps included community surveys, smoke and dye testing, flow monitoring, metering and hydraulic modeling.
Councilmembers pressed for detail on the study boundary and schedule. Councilmember Schnetzer asked what “the entire West Side” meant; the director replied it covers roughly “from 2270 East to the Big Walnut,” and said the study will identify tributary and storm-system deficiencies and opportunities to pair sewer work with future street rebuilds. Councilmember Renner asked about timing; the director said the city expects to issue a notice to proceed and provide preliminary information by “late this fall, or by the first quarter of next year.”
Several members also asked about green infrastructure and alignment alternatives. The director said AECOM’s proposal included evaluation of green streets, recycled-content materials and an alternative relief-sewer alignment that was among the factors that led to AECOM’s selection.
Council asked that the contract be advanced on an emergency basis. The director said the emergency request is to coordinate with Columbia Gas, which has a major project moving through the same corridors, explaining the practical need to determine vertical and horizontal utility placements: “The sewer is gonna be deeper than their their line, so making sure in areas where we’re overlapping in the corridors, we wanna make sure that we’re dictating which side of the street that they’re on.” The committee agreed to put the item on first reading for the May 19 agenda and on the June 2 consent agenda.
The presentation did not include a final negotiated fee or contract document; council requested further information before final action.
