Council approves design amendment to address more extensive rehab at wastewater plant influent station

Council approved a professional-services amendment on May 13 to allow the city's design consultant to complete final design, bidding and extended construction-phase services for the wastewater treatment plant expansion and the West Loop reuse pump station. The amendment will also cover a new, detailed technical memorandum and full design for the South Influent Pump Station rehabilitation; deterioration over the project period exceeded the earlier scoped rehab.

Staff explained the original design began in February 2019 and construction reached substantial completion in January 2025, but the South Influent Pump Station's concrete and embedded steel have suffered accelerated deterioration. The previously scoped minor rehab is no longer sufficient, staff said; the amendment tasks Freese & Nichols to develop a full rehabilitation design and bid documents and to extend on-site construction representation through final completion.

The amendment amount is not to exceed $270,664, bringing the design-consultant total to $6,496,523. Funding will come from proceeds of the 2019 water and sewer revenue bond issued through the Texas Water Development Board. Council approved the amendment unanimously.

Why it matters: The influent pump station is where raw sewage enters the plant; its structural failure would affect treatment operations. Completing a robust rehabilitation design now addresses long-term reliability and avoids repeated repairs.

What's next: The consultant will prepare final design documents for the pump-station rehab so the city can competitively bid construction at a future council meeting; construction-phase representation will continue until project closeout.