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City awards $16.1 million contract to replace aging electrical systems at wastewater plant
Summary
The commission awarded a competitive construction contract to TLC Diversified to replace outdated electrical components, add a new switchgear building and upgrade feeders and motor control centers at the wastewater treatment plant; work will be financed in part by a low‑interest SRF loan.
The City Commission approved a $16,116,563 construction contract June 5 to upgrade electrical systems at Dunedin’s wastewater treatment plant, which staff said is operating with equipment original to the facility’s 1990 construction.
Alex (project engineer) told the commission the plant’s electrical gear has performed under regular maintenance but “has exceeded its predicted service time,” and the master‑plan review recommended immediate replacement. The project will replace motor control centers, breakers, control panels, transformers and feeders, and will construct a new electrical building to house a 4,000‑amp switchgear assembly.
Staff competitively advertised the work and recommended awarding the contract to TLC Diversified Inc. (Palmetto, Florida) as the lowest responsive bidder. The contract is the base bid plus selected additive alternatives for two motor‑control‑center replacements and an emergency generator/MCC building, for a total of $16,116,563.
Public works and plant staff described the upgrades as essential to reliability, safety and maintainability. Project manager Alex said newer equipment will reduce spare‑parts scarcity and improve arc‑flash safety and system resiliency; he described the new switchgear building as the location where the Duke Energy feed and the plant’s emergency generator will be coordinated.
Funding will include the city’s capital program and expected State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan participation, which staff described as low interest and appropriate for large utility infrastructure projects. Staff said the project had been value‑engineered and pared back from earlier estimates to fit the SRF budget before rebidding, and that project construction will span multiple years when fieldwork begins.
The commission voted unanimously to award the contract and instructed staff to proceed with final contracting and SRF closeout steps.
