Preston council asks contractor bids to extend sewer laterals, discusses plant costs and monitoring upgrades

Preston — The Preston City Council voted to request bids to extend sewer service laterals as part of the ongoing wastewater treatment plant upgrade and directed staff to seek two kinds of cost estimates: (1) the cost to extend laterals from the new mainline to the back of curb and (2) a per-linear-foot estimate to replace private property laterals to the house.

The request for bids came after engineers told the council that roughly 50–60 homes on the planned replacement mile have laterals in poor condition. Council members and staff discussed three standard approaches: leave homeowners responsible from the house to the mainline, replace laterals to the back of curb, or replace laterals all the way to the house. Contractors would need to change scope if the city opted to replace private-property laterals.

The decision to ask RSCI (the plant contractor) for preliminary bids was made as an information step only; the council emphasized no construction will be approved until final costs and funding are reviewed. Kolter Hollingshead of Keller Engineering explained the bids would likely be priced per linear foot so the council could compare options; Public Works staff said early contractor estimates could take weeks and the lateral work might be scheduled for next spring if added to the project.

Why it matters: the city is completing a wastewater treatment plant upgrade funded in part by grants and loans; sewer rate increases have already been mailed to customers to cover debt service and operations. During public comment, resident Jacob Hansen walked the council through his calculations on rate changes and asked why sewer charges rose more than earlier messaging suggested. Council members and staff responded that state law treats water and sewer as enterprise funds (not profit centers), that grants covered a portion of project costs, and that changing federal standards and rising construction costs since 2015 increased the project price. Staff said roughly half the project cost is covered by grants and that some grant funding reduced the total borrowing burden.

Staff also recommended, and council discussed, creating a plan to notify affected homeowners well in advance if the council later approves extending laterals to property lines; members suggested letters, cooperative scheduling so homeowners can hire contractors to piggyback on city work, and that any private work remain the homeowner’s financial responsibility unless the council decides otherwise.

Separately, council discussed adding remote monitoring devices to the town’s nearly dozen sewage lift stations so alarms would report into the new treatment plant SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system. Automation Works and the plant contractor can provide a cost estimate; staff said a back-of-envelope number might be in the low six figures for full networked monitoring. The council voted to request a cost estimate (not to approve expenditure) and table action until the next meeting so members can avoid “signing a blank check.”

On operations, councilors voted to decline a proposed contract with Mountain West Water Works after hearing that the city has hired a full‑time, Class 4 licensed operator and that the mandatory DEQ requirement is to name a substitute responsible‑in‑charge with equal or higher licensing; staff said retaining a backup is possible at lower monthly cost than the outside contract. The council found the outside contract redundant given the new hire and voted to not sign.

What was decided: council approved a motion to request RSCI bids for lateral extension and linear‑foot private‑property replacement cost estimates, approved requesting a written cost estimate to add lift‑station monitoring to the SCADA system for review at the next meeting, and voted to end negotiations to hire Mountain West Water Works. The council stressed decisions to proceed would depend on final costs, funding agency (USDA/other) approvals, and whether contingency funds remain in the project budget.

Background and next steps: the wastewater treatment plant project is approaching substantial completion on major components; staff reported leak tests, clarifier and aeration equipment installations, and membrane vendor inspections in recent weeks. Council asked staff to return with RSCI bid comparisons and a homeowner-notification plan. If council approves any lateral replacements beyond the mainline reconnections, work may be scheduled next construction season.