Council approves $198,000 bid to address recurring flooding on Gilbert Street

The Finance Committee and full council approved awarding the Gilbert Street drainage project to D'Amber Construction for $198,000 to install drainage pipe and catch basins at a chronic flood location. Public Works staff said the job is more complex than a typical in-house drainage job because gas lines run on both sides of the road and a duct from an electrical substation crosses the street; for those reasons, the department said it needed to put the work out to bid.

Public-works engineer Eric Earls said the work will include installing the new drainage line and coordinating with utilities; the department expects the roadway to be paved in the current paving season (likely before November) and will assess whether the paving needs to extend further down the hill depending on settling. Earls said a prior dry well on the street operates during smaller storms but is overwhelmed in larger events; nearby new development has not caused the flooding, he said, because the new development's stormwater system is doing its job — the city’s street drainage currently dumps into the development’s facility and needs to be re-routed to prevent puddling and pavement damage.

Council members asked about the criteria for taking on drainage projects and whether the city prioritizes problems that affect more residents or cause claims. Earls said the department prioritizes projects based on claims history, traffic volume and cost effectiveness and that this section of Gilbert Street has produced a number of pothole and property-claim incidents that made the project a priority.

Outcome: The council approved the contract award. Public Works will provide schedule details to council leadership once it finalizes scheduling with the awarded contractor.