Speedway approves design contracts for wastewater expansion tied to state agreed order

The Speedway Town Council on Jan. 13 approved professional services agreements to advance a wastewater treatment expansion the town said is required under an agreed order with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

Town Manager Grant Kleinhunds told the council the town selected alternative No. 2 — a 1,500,000-gallon storage tank combined with a disk-filter wet-weather treatment system — after studying multiple options. He said the town has submitted a preliminary engineering report to IDEM and needs the design work to prepare construction documents and bidding materials.

Kleinhunds said the design agreement with RQAW covers 50% and 90% design milestones, final construction documents, cost opinions and bidding support. The professional services fee for that agreement is $1,367,700, which Kleinhunds said represents about 9.4% of the roughly $14.5 million estimated construction cost. He said typical engineering design fees run 8%–15% of construction cost.

Kleinhunds described the project timeline as a roughly 340-day design period from notice to proceed, with final design documents expected in late 2025 and construction likely beginning in summer 2026. He said the selected alternative should reduce wet-weather overflows and was chosen in part because the disk-filter system would allow treatment as water enters the plant, reducing the required storage volume compared with a larger tank. He noted a previously considered 3,000,000-gallon option would have cost about $20 million.

The council voted to approve the RQAW contract. The motion passed 5-0.

In a separate vote the council approved a proposal from Atlas Geotechnical Consultants for geotechnical testing related to the tank and site work. The Atlas scope and fee of $24,980 will support foundation and soil analyses that Kleinhunds said are necessary “before we put in a 1,500,000-gallon CSO tank.” That motion also passed 5-0.

Kleinhunds said the town’s need for the project stems from three storm-related overflow events documented under the town’s permit; he said refusal to comply with the agreed order could result in revocation of the town’s wastewater treatment license and force the town to send sewage to Indianapolis at substantially higher rates. “It’s effectively a mandate that we have to do,” he said.

Councilors asked for clarifying details about timeline and lifespan. Kleinhunds said the design standard is expected to serve the town for 40–50 years under current growth assumptions and that the team attempted to balance cost and future-proofing while negotiating the plan with IDEM.

The council directed staff to proceed with the contracts and begin financing analysis once final design is complete.

The approvals were part of the council’s consent votes at the meeting.