Council approves time extension and $789,612 amendment to support Green River wastewater treatment plant completion

The Green River City Council approved a time-only change order for the wastewater treatment plant replacement contractor and approved amendment number 4 to the city's agreement with Burns & McDonnell Engineering Co. for up to $789,612 in additional professional services related to construction oversight and project closeout.

Public Works Director Mark Westnessko told the council the construction schedule has been affected by electrical equipment delays; the change order extends the contractor's completion date (staff estimated the extension at roughly seven months, from a planned June completion to January). The change order does not increase the construction contract dollar amount.

Separately, the city sought additional consultant services to cover construction oversight, review of pay applications, responses to contractor questions, submittal review, and preparation of start-up and final reports as the plant comes online. The council approved an amendment to Burns & McDonnellnot to exceed $789,612 to cover those professional services.

Public comment: Resident Philip Stanton pressed the council for justification of the amount, noting the amendment sum is large relative to remaining construction work and expressing concern about long-term sewer-rate impacts for residents. He asked what would happen if the city declined the amendment and whether contractors would stop work or the city would face litigation. Westnessko replied the extension covers approximately seven months and outlined the project's funding background: earlier loan assumptions in 2018 and 2020, higher bids in 2021, subsequent value engineering and re-bidding in 2023, and additional grant support. He said funding agencies provided assistance including an initial $6 million ARPA grant, an additional $10 million ARPA award, and a reduced interest rate through the SRF program; staff said the total ARPA support was about $17 million and the revised loan package is roughly $40 million at 0.25% interest, producing debt-service projections similar to the earlier $30 million loan scenario.

Council action: A motion to approve change order number 1 (time only) for Bodell Construction passed unanimously. The council then approved amendment number 4 to the Burns & McDonnell agreement for additional professional services, not to exceed $789,612; the motion passed unanimously.

Why it matters: The actions authorize additional consultant work and extend the schedule so the city can receive delayed major electrical equipment and complete start-up and close-out activities. The amendment amount and time extension prompted public scrutiny because the sums will factor into long-term project costs and rate projections.

What happens next: Staff will oversee implementation of the extended construction schedule, perform on-site oversight and inspections as described, and complete startup and closeout deliverables. The city and funding agencies indicated the amendment is eligible under the State Revolving Fund (SRF) construction loan program.