Hickman awards $1.24 million contract for booster pump station after bids top engineer estimate

The Hickman City Council on Aug. 26 approved a $1.24 million contract to Vancirk Brothers Contracting (Sutton) for construction of a booster pump station near the water tower, accepting the low responsive bid after a staff engineer described a wide gap between estimated and bid prices.

Owen Kllum, the project design engineer from Olsson, said the engineer’s opinion of probable cost for the overall project was about $854,000 but the low bid returned at roughly $1.24 million — a difference Kllum characterized as “about 30%.” He told council that recent material-cost increases (he cited roughly a 15% rise in some materials) and higher labor rates explain much of the variance but that lead times and tariff uncertainty also affect contractor pricing.

Kllum said the purchase cost of the primary pump equipment was about $580,000 and that the installation and associated site work account for the remainder of the low bid. He compared the labor-to-equipment proportions with two similar past projects and said the installers’ share of cost in this bid was unusually large.

Councilmembers asked whether the booster pump should wait until associated storage (a new water tank) is in place. Staff and the engineer said the booster station addresses immediate pressure problems for higher-elevation areas and that storage construction is on a different timeline; borings are underway with an anticipated tank bid in spring 2026. "This pump is a necessity first," a council member said during discussion.

Council voted to accept Vancirk Brothers’ bid and award the contract. City staff said the building and major mechanical equipment have extended lead times (the engineer noted the building had an estimated ~28-week lead time), and council asked staff to provide a future project update and public outreach when construction begins.

The motion to award was made and seconded during the meeting and carried on roll call; staff will bring the contractor agreement back to council for final authorization of the contract documents and to include grant/permit conditions where applicable.

The booster pump project is expected to reduce pressure shortfalls in the elevated sections of town and to operate as part of a longer-term water-system improvement plan that includes planned storage.