Vero Beach staff outline timeline and rising cost for new water reclamation facility

Rob Bolton, a city staff member, told the Vero Beach City Council the city is moving forward with building a new water reclamation facility and has shifted to a construction-manager-at-risk (CMAR) delivery method to reduce unknown cost risk and improve coordination between engineer, contractor and subcontractors.

The update explained why the city chose to build a new facility rather than retrofit the existing plant or partner with the county: retrofitting on the constrained existing site posed operational complexity, while county capacity and pipeline costs made partnering more expensive. “We will get better treatment if we construct our own, and that’s the path that we took,” Bolton said.

Bolton said consultants and contractor Wharton Smith completed about 60–90% of design work and that bid advertising and subcontractor site visits are scheduled in the coming weeks. The team expects receipt of CMAR bids in early March and hoped to return a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) recommendation to council by April 22. If the procurement schedule holds, construction would begin in mid‑2025 and extend roughly 30 months, putting substantial completion in 2027 and project wrap in early 2028.

The projected all‑in cost increased from roughly $158 million (earlier estimate) to about $178 million, Bolton said. That change would raise the likely bond amount the city needs to about $150 million; officials said they will know the exact financing number after the contractor GMP is final. Bolton said the higher figure reflects market and material cost changes and project contingencies.

City staff discussed technical choices and equipment changes identified during CMAR coordination. Bolton said a change to revert to higher‑spec Amican pumps for parts of the membrane package will result in a change order to the supplier Kubota, and clarified some equipment responsibilities between Kubota and Wharton Smith to reduce contractual overlap.

Project delivery, schedule and environmental/permitting items remain active risks. Bolton noted gopher tortoise relocation permitting is underway for site inhabitants and that the city will install protective fencing during construction so tortoises do not re‑enter active work zones. He also said portions of the old plant will be reused where feasible, but those retrofit costs are currently being held as allowances until more precise pricing is available.

Bolton emphasized the CMAR approach aims to reduce price uncertainty by having the contractor assemble subcontractor pricing early and commit to scopes, improving constructability and reducing schedule and cost overwrites. “With the CMAR process, they actually prepare their own bids that identify exactly what the subs are gonna do and gets an exact price for what is there,” Bolton said.

Nut Graf: The update gives the council an interim cost and schedule picture ahead of a March–April procurement window. The council will decide whether to accept the contractor GMP and the associated financing package once the CMAR returns firm pricing; until then the project remains in design/construction procurement and subject to change.

What council asked and what happens next

- Timeline and procurement: City staff expect bid advertisement and subcontractor site visits in late January/February, receipt of bids in early March, CMAR selection discussions mid‑March, and a council decision on a GMP in April. - Costs and financing: Staff reported an all‑in project estimate of about $178 million and indicated an anticipated bond size near $150 million; exact financing will be determined after the GMP is returned. - Technical changes: The project will include a centrifuge for dewatering biosolids, relocation and refurbishment of the CleanBee odor‑control unit, and pump specification changes that triggered change‑order work. - Environmental/permits: Gopher tortoise relocation permitting is active; staff plan temporary exclusion fencing during construction and will coordinate final permitting and mitigation.

What the update does not decide

- Council has not approved a final GMP or financing plan. Staff said those decisions will return to council after CMAR bids are evaluated. - Precise contingency allocation and final reused‑equipment choices remain subject to contractor pricing and a future council decision.

Ending: Council members asked clarifying questions about alternatives, reuse of existing equipment and schedule contingencies; staff said they will return with the GMP and recommended financing once the CMAR completes its pricing and negotiations. The project remains on track for construction start in mid‑2025 and completion in early 2028, subject to change based on procurement and permitting outcomes.