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Council OKs Odessa Development Corporation advance for I‑20 utility relocation design; renews compliance-audit contract
Summary
Council authorized ODC to advance design funds for the IH‑20 utility relocation project and approved renewal of Whitley Penn auditing services; staff said ODC reserves will be used and that the design costs are reimbursable by TxDOT.
The Odessa City Council approved two economic-development items on Oct. 14 linked to the I‑20 utility relocation project and oversight of incentive grants.
The council approved a recommendation by the Odessa Development Corporation (ODC) to advance design costs for utility relocations tied to the Texas Department of Transportation’s IH‑20 project. David Butan, representing ODC, said reserve funds yield approximately 4% annually and advancing design costs (estimates presented in the meeting) would be reimbursable by TxDOT; staff estimated an ODC contribution could cost the corporation between about $90,000 and $180,000 depending on project timing.
The council also approved renewal of a compliance consultant agreement with Whitley Penn, which conducts annual audits of ODC grant recipients to verify job creation, payroll and capital-investment requirements. The updated agreement adds language requiring Whitley Penn to complete audit work within 60 days of receiving all information from a grantee to prevent payment delays.
Alex (city engineer/technical lead) described the scale of the utility relocations: 54 total relocations, about 26,100 linear feet of water line work and 16,700 linear feet of wastewater relocations. He presented a professional-services proposal not to exceed $4,505,163 for engineering services required for the relocations; ODC board recommended advancing design costs and the council voted to approve the approach. Council approved both items unanimously.
