Atoka staff outline Main Street lift station construction timeline, force-main funding options and geotech studies for Mead Lake levees

Town engineers and consultant SSR gave the Atoka Board a status update on several water and sewer infrastructure projects: the Main Street lift station (a new wet-well and associated above‑grade equipment), a proposed force-main replacement and systemwide improvements, and proposed geotechnical work to assess levee stability at Mead Lake and Johnson Pond.

Ben Ledsinger, SSR’s engineer, said contract documents are in hand and the contractor has submitted bid bonds and initial submittals. The construction schedule shown to the board estimates a worst-case 400-day project duration and targets mid‑May for initial ground work. "So worst case scenario is 400 days," an engineer told the board, with a hoped-for wrap-up in May–June of the following year.

Staff emphasized there should be no long-term interruption of sewer service because work will be phased to allow new components to be switched into service as they are completed. The board was told pumps and generators are likely the longest lead items: vendors quoted lead times in the range of roughly 48 weeks.

On funding, staff said Atoka applied to the State Revolving Fund (SRF) for a larger scope of work after ARPA funds proved insufficient. The SRF submission was filed about two weeks before the meeting; town staff said the state will publish a ranking list and then projects in the queue proceed through facilities planning, environmental review and loan agreements.

A broader force‑main and system rehabilitation package discussed with the board carries an estimated budget of about $12 million in total and would cover replacement of the force main from Kearns to Main Street, water and sewer to the Walker Parkway subdivision, rehabilitation of two lift stations and some prepayment related to Mead Lake road repairs.

Separately, SSR presented two geotechnical proposals to evaluate levee stability at Mead Lake and Johnson Pond — roughly $22,000 and $26,000 each. The scope would include subsurface borings, soils testing and stability analyses to inform options from do‑nothing to building up the levee or constructing a new separated levee. Town staff said they plan to bring the proposals back at the next board meeting for formal consideration.

Why it matters: the lift station and force main work are core to sewer system reliability and will affect construction schedules, funding decisions and ratepayer planning. The geotech work is intended to reduce risk and inform whether more extensive interventions such as draining a pond or building a new levee are necessary.

The board asked about inspection checkpoints; staff said a resident project representative (RPR) will be onsite to document concrete tests, cylinders and other inspection records required for ARPA compliance. Consultants and staff expect to provide construction documentation as part of reimbursement requests.

Board members asked about temporary service interruptions; staff reiterated the goal of phasing that avoids long shutdowns. The board asked staff to return with benchmark inspection points and a recommendation on the levee proposals at the next regular meeting.