Lawrence City Utilities Board approves water and sewer contracts, GIS amendment and two account adjustments

The Lawrence City Utilities Board voted unanimously July 8 to approve multiple water and sewer infrastructure measures including a small change order to the Pendleton Pike water-main relocation, a $1,697,675 contract for Fort Harrison Collection System capacity improvements (Phase 3), an amendment adding as-built GIS deliverables to an existing engineering agreement, a task order for preliminary design of a lift-station inflow-and-infiltration removal project and two sanitary-sewer billing adjustments.

Utilities Superintendent Paul (title: utilities superintendent) told the board that Change Order No. 1 for the Pendleton Pike water-main relocation increases the Milestone Contractors LP contract by $5,067 and includes a request to extend contract times. Staff said the originally specified 12-inch line-stop valve could not be used after excavation and that a 12-inch insertion valve is recommended instead. Milestone requested 39 additional days for substantial completion and 40 additional days for final completion; staff attributed the delays to AES power-pole relocation work that had to be completed before the water-main relocation could proceed.

The board approved Amendment No. 2 to the professional services agreement with Clark Dietz Inc. to add construction engineering work and to require a complete as-built GIS digital-data submittal. The superintendent said the amendment changes scope only and does not increase the contract price.

Separately, the board approved an agreement with SLB Pipe Solutions LLC for the Fort Harrison Collection System capacity improvements Phase 3 project in the contract amount of $1,697,675 and approved a notice to proceed. The board recorded the contract times as commencing July 9, 2025, with a substantial-completion date of Dec. 19, 2025, and a final-completion date of April 24, 2026.

The board also approved Task Order No. 5 under Master Services Agreement 202401463 with American Structure Point Inc. for preliminary design, data gathering and preliminary design services for the Lawrence 46 & Post Road Lift Station 26 I&I removal project for a not-to-exceed amount of $189,400. The superintendent said future amendments will add compensation for final design, bidding, construction administration and inspection.

The superintendent reminded the board that the project area is subject to an EPA administrative order on consent (AOC) and said the work covered by the AOC must be completed within five years. The superintendent stated the deadline as April 2030 and noted that engineers estimated the overall EPA-required projects at approximately $41,960,000 in a late-2023/early-2024 submission to the EPA. (The meeting transcript contained a verbal slip saying "April 3030"; the board's five-year timeframe corresponds to a 2030 deadline.)

Finally, the board approved two sanitary sewer account adjustments: $938.11 for 1240 Beresdale Drive because of a spigot leak and $266.32 for 10988 Echo Spring Circle because of an irrigation leak. All motions were approved by voice vote with ayes recorded.

The board recorded no citizen comments and adjourned the meeting.