Newton City Council unanimously approves sole‑source wet‑well cleaning contract

The Newton City Council on Feb. 15 unanimously approved awarding a sole‑source contract to Stanley Environmental Solutions to clean the large influent wet well at the city’s wastewater treatment plant.

Public Works and Utilities Director Dusty Wentz told the council the wet well collects all of the city’s wastewater and that debris is supposed to be removed by a bar screen. “Because of the worn‑out parts of the bar screen at the influent pump station, not all of the debris gets removed in this bar screen,” Wentz said, adding that staff has previously contracted out wet‑well cleanings and this will be the second cleaning in three years. He said the FY2022 budget includes funding for the cleaning but did not provide a contract amount.

Wentz said staff surveyed contractors in North Carolina and South Carolina and identified three firms that perform pump‑station cleaning, but only Stanley Environmental Solutions expressed interest and had the equipment to handle a high‑volume wet well used at a treatment facility. “The only vendor in our region that can clean this wet well is Stanley Environmental Solutions,” he said, and recommended sole sourcing the work to that company.

Council Member Jody Dixon moved to approve the sole‑source award; Council Member Roy Johnson seconded. The motion passed unanimously. The approval was entered into the council’s record; ordinances and resolutions related to the action are on file in the City Clerk’s office.

The council did not state a dollar amount in the meeting record; follow‑up procurement documents and the contract award notice are kept by the city clerk and public works department.