The Moline City Council on July 22 approved an amendment to the Strand Associates contract to provide construction-phase engineering, oversight and related work for the South Slope Wastewater Treatment Facility project. The amendment is $8,946,900 and covers expanded construction administration and associated services during an approximately 48-month construction period.

City staff described the South Slope project as a regulatory-driven, multi-year replacement and modernization of the treatment plant and said construction is roughly a 48-month schedule. City staff noted construction cost estimates increased considerably during design, and said city finance staff secured a long-term low-interest loan from EPA programs to avoid issuing a general obligation bond. The Strand amendment pays for engineering services and construction oversight to ensure regulatory compliance and to deliver operations/maintenance manuals and training at project closeout.

A city presentation noted construction cost estimates rose from earlier forecasts (staff quoted earlier planning numbers ranging from about $68 million to over $114 million). Staff thanked city finance personnel for negotiating additional low-interest loan capacity and recommended the City Council approve the Strand amendment to continue with project implementation.

Council approved the amendment by voice vote after a brief staff presentation; the item passed without recorded roll-call tallies in the meeting minutes. City staff said the amendment enables continued progress on a project the city describes as necessary to meet regulatory requirements and replace aging infrastructure.

Staff identified next steps as continued construction oversight, procurement of training and operations materials, and coordination with regulatory agencies and the loan servicer. The project's timeline and financing structure remain central to the implementation plan, and staff said the city will report on construction milestones as the project advances.