Lawton City Council to approve contractors for waterline, sewer line projects

City Council members will look at multiple infrastructure projects today, with actions ranging from naming a contractor to proceeding with design plans.

Action includes acting on a city staff recommendation to award a $14,177,260 contract to TIMCO Blastings & Coatings Inc., Bristow, to replace waterlines in north Lawton. The project falls under a program outlined by Public Utilities Director Rusty Whisenhunt last year, one relying on a revolving loan fund handled by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board to cover costs.

Here, TIMCO will be replacing 37,000 feet of high maintenance waterlines in a neighborhood area north of Cache Road, between Northwest 38th and Northwest 52nd streets. The work will replace deteriorating 8-inch lines with 12-inch lines and also will include new public water service lines and meter sets. TIMCO was the lowest responsive bidder from four bids submitted for the project, which is one of several water- and sewer-related projects to be funded through borrowed funding.

The council also will respond to a recommendation from city staff to award a $242,150 contract to Integrity Construction Services LLC, Indiahoma, to replace 1,800 feet of 8-inch sewer line and the sanitary sewer for abutting properties in south Lawton, in the 1700 and 1800 blocks between Monroe and Jefferson, and the 1200 to 1500 blocks between New York and Pennsylvania. The project, estimated to take four months, came in more than $100,000 under the $363,450 engineering estimate.

City staff also is recommending the council amend an existing design contract with Garver LLC, allowing work to begin on upgrades along the Numu Creek drainage channel in a flood-prone area of south Lawton.

Garver will be handling designs for work to widen and stabilize the channel, beginning upstream of South Railroad Street and moving 0.35 of a mile north/northwest to just downstream of West Lee Boulevard. City officials said the project will widen the channel along the alignment of the existing stream while stabilizing the banks to lessen erosion. The $687,825 worth of design work, funded through a debt-savings program in the Oklahoma Water Resources Board revolving loan fund, will include topographic and property surveys, geotechnical work, and conceptual designs for three project alternatives (with costs for each).

The firm will proceed to preliminary designs once the council selects the concept it wants. The contract also specifies the firm will help with the bidding process and the 180-day construction phase.

In other business, the council will react to a staff recommendation to reject the lone bid for the Ellsworth dam spillway repair project. That spillway was severely damaged by flooding in 2015, and while analysis was being done, additional damage (to include a void under the spillway) was found. A formal engineering estimate set the upgrades at $24,150,175, but the bid from Shimmick was $61.585 million, which the staff analysis designated as “not responsible due to the unrealistic pricing….”

Funding for the vital project is coming from multiple sources, including $10 million from a state-designated American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant, $1 million from a state competitive ARPA grant, and $925,251 from a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant. The remainder of the cost will come from the City of Lawton.