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Commission approves three Austin Water contract amendments totaling about $6.4 million; one rebid contractor replaced
Summary
The Austin Water/Wastewater Commission on May 21 approved three contract amendments for local pipeline and lift-station work, including a rebid construction contract for East Allandale–White Rock, a $5 million increase for McNeil Drive tunneling construction-phase services, and a $600,000 amendment for the Boggy Creek force main extension.
The Austin Water/Wastewater Commission on May 21 approved three contract amendments covering construction and engineering services for local pipeline and lift-station work.
The commission authorized: (1) a construction contract for the East Allandale–White Rock neighborhood water and wastewater system renewal rebid with Facilities Rehabilitation Inc. for $4,799,250 plus a $479,925 contingency (total not to exceed $5,279,175); (2) a $5,000,000 amendment for construction-phase engineering services to Black & Veatch Corporation on the McNeil Drive water transmission main project, bringing that contract’s not-to-exceed total to $8,800,000; and (3) a $600,000 amendment for engineering services with AECOM Technical Services Inc. for the Boggy Creek lift station force main extension, raising that contract’s not-to-exceed amount to $2,200,000. Funding for all three actions was identified as available in Austin Water’s capital budget.
Why it mattered: the East Allandale–White Rock contract is a rebid after the original contractor — from Houston, Austin Water staff said — and the city agreed to a mutual separation because of schedule and quality concerns. Commission members asked for details about the original contractor’s performance and payments; Austin Water staff said some payments were withheld to reflect deficient work and that the city sought an equitable settlement before rebidding.
Kevin Koller, Austin Water division manager for Pipeline CIP Delivery, said the rebid followed performance and schedule issues with an out-of-town contractor; Steven Vargas, the project sponsor, said the original contractor completed roughly 10% of the work before the mutual separation.
On the McNeil Drive tunneling project, staff said the $5,000,000 construction-phase services amendment covers specialty, around-the-clock tunneling inspections, geotechnical and other testing and night-shift coverage because tunneling work will run for about two years. Kane Way, supervising engineer on the pipeline project delivery team, said specialist inspectors and testing (including nondestructive testing and geological mapping) are required because city staff lack the continuous tunneling inspection capacity.
The Boggy Creek amendment was presented as a funding increase for capital delivery engineering services; no substantive technical objections were raised during the meeting.
Votes and recusals: the motions for items 4, 5 and 11 were approved. On item 4 (East Allandale rebid), the vote was unanimous among present commissioners except that Commissioner Penn recused. On item 5 (McNeil Drive engineering amendment) the commission voted unanimously in favor with Commissioner Penn recusing. On item 11 (Boggy Creek amendment) the vote was unanimous with Commissioner Penn recusing.
What’s next: Austin Water will proceed with the rebid for East Allandale–White Rock and with the engineering and construction work described above, financed from Austin Water’s capital budget. The commission’s action authorized staff to complete contract negotiations and move forward with procurement and project delivery.
Ending: Commissioners asked staff to continue reporting on contract performance, change orders and any use of contingencies as projects proceed.
