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Council approves $118,530 amendment for Rivertown/South Kenner drainage; design pivot to small pump station after telecom conflict
Summary
An amendment of $118,530 to the Rivertown/South Kenner drainage design was approved after construction crews found more telecommunication lines under the railroad than designers expected. The change replaces a planned 36‑inch jack‑and‑bore with a small pump station at the end of Duncan Street.
The council approved Amendment No. 6 to the Linfield, Hunter & Junius professional services agreement for the Rivertown/South Kenner drainage improvements, increasing design and inspection funding by $118,530 to a new total not to exceed $715,480. The motion (by Council Member Dunne, seconded by Council Member Wilmot) passed 7‑0.
Mister Gonzales, city staff, said the project — originally designed to discharge through a 36‑inch outfall across the railroad tracks at the end of Duncan Street — encountered an unexpected field condition during construction. The consultant was informed by the railroad during design that three telecommunication lines existed in the right-of-way; during construction crews discovered seven.
"Because of the seven telecommunication lines we could not do the 36‑inch jack and bore across the railroad track," Gonzales said. City staff and the consultant will now design a small drainage pump station at the end of Duncan Street to pump the runoff across the tracks with a much smaller pipe. Gonzales said construction of the pump station requires additional design, survey and inspection work captured in the amendment. Construction is already underway and financed with local and federal funds.
A resident whose property fronts Duncan Street asked how the pump station would affect nearby homes and whether the new design would route more water toward the neighborhood. Gonzales said the revised system is an independent drainage system intended to reduce flooding along Williams Boulevard between the railroad and Reverend Richard Wilson Drive and that the new pump station should not adversely affect existing local drainage. He said the city will return with a construction change order once pump‑station costs are finalized and will notify nearby residents when design is complete.
Council approved the amendment 7‑0 and directed staff to proceed with final design and permitting.
