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SFPUC seeks Arcadis contract to staff construction of $625M‑backed biosolids digester project
Summary
SFPUC told supervisors the biosolids digester project at the Southeast plant is 95% designed and supported by a $625 million WIFIA loan; the commission asked the committee to approve a $42 million, seven‑year Arcadis contract for construction management augmentation.
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission told the Board of Supervisors’ Government Audit & Oversight Committee on June 20 that its biosolids digester facilities project at the Southeast Water Pollution Control Plant is ready to transition from design to construction and needs construction management staff augmentation.
Carolyn Chiu, project manager for the biosolids project, said the project replaces aging digestion infrastructure, locates new digesters farther from homes in Bayview‑Hunters Point, and incorporates best‑available technologies to improve treatment, reduce landfill disposal and capture biogas to generate up to about 5 megawatts of power for the plant. The project team said they certified the environmental review, secured controller appropriations and obtained a $625 million low‑interest WIFIA loan — the largest single WIFIA allocation to date — which the PUC estimates will translate into over $100 million in long‑term debt‑service savings.
To manage the complex, constrained construction, the PUC recommended contracting Arcadis US Inc. for construction management staff augmentation under a professional services agreement not to exceed $42,000,000 through July 2025. Chiu said the procurement yielded Arcadis as the successful proposer and that the contract requires a meaningful share of work to be performed by subconsultants.
BLA analysis: Severin Campbell of the Budget and Legislative Analyst’s office reviewed the budget tables and confirmed the contract budget (about $42 million) with roughly $36 million in direct labor. The BLA recommended approval and provided a table of labor breakdowns in its report.
What’s next: The committee approved the item with a recommendation to the full Board of Supervisors.
Quote: “This $625 million loan is the largest single allocation in WIFIA history,” Chiu said, noting the long‑term savings and the need to augment PUC staff to manage construction effectively.
Ending: The Arcadis contract is intended to provide the PUC with the additional in‑house management capacity needed for safe, timely delivery during construction.
