When the Watonga City Council convened for its last regular meeting of the year, it made some decisions that will impact the city well into the future.
Inman Excavating, the company working on the sewer line project at the four way, presented several pay requests and change orders.
The first pay request was in the amount of $198,664.24. The funding for the project was in part from a Community Development Block Grant, or CDBG. Although the grant only pays a portion of the project, the question was raised by city treasurer Rodney Jacks whether the bills are paid on the project and then the city is reimbursed, or the funds are requested then the bills paid.
Jacks was unsure of the process due in large part to the funds-first process that has been the norm during the airport runway rehab, paid through a Federal Aviation Administration grant. However, a spokesman for the project attending the meeting virtually indicated that for CDBG, the city would pay the bills first, then request reimbursement from the granting authority, providing it was in a financial situation to do so.
City Manager Karrie Little pointed out she had already requested the reimbursement from the sewer project grant, but the funds were not yet inhouse. Council agreed to make the payment so that the contractor would not have to wait on payment.
Josh Risley, the spokesman on the virtual meeting, also provided information on the next agenda item, a change order for $23,600. He explained the amount was for dirt to backfill the project. When the excavation began, it was assumed the dirt removed from the ditch could be reused to backfill. However, the banks instead were full of chunks of concrete and asphalt with a small amount of soil cover. The debris had to be disposed of and the space refilled with soil. Complicating the dig was the location of gas and communication lines, which proved to be closer to the ditch than originally thought. That meant an embankment first thought available for use to backfill was out of bounds and that soil, too, was unavailable. Council, once briefed on the issue, agreed to the change order.
A second change order required council choose from among three options. When the project was begun, there was no allowance made for repair or replacement of sidewalks in the area. However, the existing sidewalks have a void underneath them now, due in part to washout of soil. They are collapsing, unsafe and not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The contractors were asking how the city wanted to address the problem.
The solution to constant running water from an artesian well in the project location is to use a perforated pipe that funnels the groundwater some 300 feet south to the tinhorn under the driveway for the old chamber of commerce building and release it there so that it can be sent to the sewage treatment plant nearby.
However, the remaining ditch would still be subject to rainwater runoff and that is where the choices came in. Did council want to go with the original flexible mat liner for the bottom of the ditch, or run it further up the sides of the ditch?
The downside of the narrower mat is that stormwater, running rapidly, could channel itself along the top edge of the mat, causing a void and eventually collapsing the sides. Originally the plan was to slow the water with riprap, stone or concrete obstacles in a zigzag pattern. The narrower mat was less expensive.
However, a wider mat that extended up the sides of the ditch would prevent the edge erosion, allow vegetation to grow through it, and protect the nearby utilities and sidewalks. Because there would be a deduct for the riprap, that deduct almost covered the higher cost of the additional mat. And the additional mat cost less per unit because more was being purchased, driving the cost of the change down further.
Council decided to adopt the ODOT-approved practice of the wider mat and approved the change order for $26,026.75.
In a similar yet separate development, council was presented with a plan for an ongoing improvement to the existing sewage treatment plant.
For many years, the sludge remaining after sewage treatment has been trucked to a property the city owns and spread on the land, which is used for cutting hay. However, the Department of Environmental Quality permit allowing the city to dispose of the sludge in this manner is about to expire and a different tack was required.
The solution is to run the sludge into semi-trailer sized drying boxes, where it is sprayed with a polymer substance. This, according to Cole Niblett from Garver Wastewater Team, allows the water to drain from the sludge and be treated again. The remaining sludge is then dry enough and clean enough that it can be trucked to a landfill for disposal.
This project is being funded in part by a Rural Energy for America Program- or REAP- grant. It is not the project to be undertaken by the city for wastewater treatment and water provision but has been in the works for several years.
However, the layout of the project accounts for future improvements. Resident Tumara Moore queried how the two projects would work together. “So, this will improve the current situation but also work with what is coming?” she asked.
Niblett explained that yes, that was the case, and the new drying beds would allow for considerable growth even with the new casino and if the prison were put back in use. The equipment, he said, would be operable for at least 20 years.
The costs of the project, at first believed to run about $640,000 has dropped to around $505,000 because the city is providing many of the services itself. The grant will cover $105,000 of the costs, and the project should begin early in the new year, with completion expected at the end of March.