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Preston council approves Keller contract for 2 million‑gallon water tank; grant covers most costs
Summary
The Preston City Council approved a professional‑services agreement with Keller and Associates to design a 2,000,000‑gallon concrete water tank, funded largely by a $3.75 million STAG grant; the contract will be signed after city counsel and Keller revise an indemnification clause.
The Preston City Council on Jan. 27 approved an agreement with Keller and Associates for design and construction‑phase engineering services for a 2,000,000‑gallon concrete water tank, city staff and the firm told the council.
The project is largely funded by a $3.75 million State and Tribal Assistance Grant (STAG) routed through federal channels; council members were told that the grant covers the “large majority” of anticipated construction costs and that the city received a waiver for the usual local match requirement.
City attorney Lyle raised a legal concern about Keller’s standard contract language in paragraph 8, an indemnity and limitation‑of‑liability provision. Lyle told the council that an open‑ended city indemnity could conflict with the Idaho Constitution because it could commit taxpayer funds outside an annual appropriation cycle. He said alternate contract language exists and that the city should remove or revise the indemnity so the city will not be required to indemnify the contractor.
A Keller representative identified in the meeting as Colter said the firm is “more than willing to work through that with the city” and that it is a common, solvable issue. The council approved the professional‑services agreement “subject to paragraph number 8” being worked out between the city attorney and Keller and Associates.
Staff and Keller described the project’s purpose and timing: the new tank would add storage to the water system to improve resiliency if the transmission line from spring sources is interrupted, provide additional fire‑flow capacity and reduce the potential service impacts of a major break. Keller told the council design work should move quickly and that, because of current demand on manufacturers, construction likely would occur in 2026 or 2027.
City staff estimated rough project costs in the meeting: a preliminary construction estimate of about $4,000,000 and an engineering/services figure mentioned in discussion of roughly $500,000, meaning the $3.75 million grant would cover most but not necessarily all construction costs; final budgetary impacts depend on actual bids.
Council members also noted system capacity: a staff member said the city currently has roughly 4,000,000 gallons of storage across three tanks and that the new 2,000,000‑gallon tank would increase capacity by approximately 50 percent.
The council voted to approve the agreement; the mayor said the signed contract will be returned to the council once city legal counsel and Keller finalize the indemnity clause. Design work was authorized to proceed pending that negotiation.
Next steps spelled out in the meeting included legal review and negotiation of paragraph 8, completion of design documents, and solicitation of construction bids once design and funding timing allow.
