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Council reviews proposed five-year OMI/Jacobs contract extension for wastewater plant with 8.5% first-year increase
Summary
At a work session, city staff and OMI/Jacobs briefed council on a proposed five‑year renewal to manage the city’s wastewater plant (Jan. 1, 2025–Dec. 31, 2029). Staff cited staffing turnover, higher chemical and electricity costs and plant aging as drivers of an 8.5% increase proposed for 2025; council pressed for details on violations, fines and staffing stability.
City staff and representatives from OMI/Jacobs briefed the Walla Walla City Council at a work session on a proposed five‑year extension of the contract to operate the city’s wastewater treatment plant, with the renewal running from Jan. 1, 2025, through Dec. 31, 2029, and an 8.5% proposed increase in 2025.
The presentation, delivered by city staff and OMI/Jacobs representatives, said the relationship dates to 2000 and that the company has acted as the city’s operations partner for more than two decades. Staff described primary cost drivers for the proposed 2025 increase as higher pay to address staffing and retention issues, inflation-driven increases in chemical costs, rising electricity costs (presenters cited roughly an 11% electricity increase), greater equipment repair spending, and operational strains tied to an aging plant and construction work.
“The plant is definitely aging,” a city…
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