Staff recommends $2.4 million engineering agreement with Hazen and Sawyer for Oxnard effluent pump station

Assistant Director of Public Works Tim Beeman told the Oxnard City Council staff recommends the mayor be authorized to execute agreement 32600091 with Hazen and Sawyer for professional engineering and consulting services for effluent pump station improvements, for a five-year term from Sept. 15, 2025, to Sept. 15, 2030, not to exceed $2,415,738.

Beeman said the effluent pump station moves treated effluent from the chlorine contact tanks to the ocean outfall and was constructed in the 1970s. "The pump station was constructed in the 1970s and recommended for replacement in the 2017 Public Works Integrated Master Plan," he said.

He said a 2024 alternatives analysis and prior master-plan work both recommended replacement rather than rehabilitation because retrofitting the existing building would trigger seismic upgrades that likely would cost more than replacing the structure. Beeman also described the pump configuration inside the building: two electrically driven motor pumps and two engine-driven pumps. "These gas powered engines are no longer supported by the manufacturer. We can't find parts for them, and they've reached the end of their useful life," he said.

Beeman described the procurement and selection process. The city released a request for proposals March 5, 2025, with a due date of April 9, 2025; the RFP was directly sent to 15 firms and posted on publicpurchase.com and the city's website. The city received three proposals. A selection committee consisting of Beeman, the wastewater division manager and a wastewater project manager ranked firms on company profile, assigned staff, project experience, project approach and understanding, and level of effort, held interviews with the top two firms and selected Hazen and Sawyer as the highest-qualified proposer.

Scope of work in the proposed agreement includes data review and condition assessment, a preliminary design report and basis of design, preparation of detailed design plans and specifications for construction bidding, and engineering services during construction such as responding to requests for information and addressing unforeseen field conditions.

Beeman said the wastewater capital fund, which is funded from the wastewater fund, has sufficient budget to cover the contract amount. He concluded the presentation by restating the recommendation to approve and authorize the mayor to execute the agreement. The transcript does not record any council vote or further action on the recommendation.