Construction on a large-scale Princeton Water and Wastewater sewer rehabilitation project is expected to begin early next year, under the supervision of an Ohio County firm.
Members of the Princeton Water and Wastewater Commission voted Thursday to award the contract for a rehabilitation of Basins V and VI of the city sewer system to Bobby Luttrell and Sons, of Olaton.
Luttrell’s bid of $2,037,300 was the lowest of three bids received for the project, Hethcoat and Davis engineer Ricky Oakley told the board.
The other bids came in at $2,059,000 and $2,172,000, he said.
The project will correct problems identified in a recent evaluation of those sections of the sewer system — two of the worst sections in the grid, water officials said.
“We’re addressing the issues that most people would put off,” said Superintendent Joey Anderson.
“We’re doing the hard part first,” added commission member Doug Osting.
The problems involve issues with the inflow and infiltration of stormwater and groundwater into the sanitary sewer system, through cracks in pipes, uncapped cleanouts, faulty connections and other means.
The water ultimately makes its way to the city sewer plant off Cadiz Road, leading to unnecessary treatment expenses.
About 70 percent of the inflow and infiltration problems are coming from residential properties, Anderson said.
Oakley noted that approximately 350 customer taps were involved in the rehab project.
Rehabilitating the basins will require line replacement in several areas, including four major city streets — West Main Street, Market Street, Hopkinsville Street and North Jefferson Street.
Between 75 and 80 percent of the project’s work involves those streets.
Motorists can expect significant traffic disruptions while the work is taking place.
“It’s going to be bad,” said Anderson. “It’ll be worse than the Druther’s Corner project.”
A preconstruction meeting with Luttrell’s principals has been scheduled for mid-January.
The contract must be signed and the project under way by Feb. 10, Oakley said.
The project is being funded in part by American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding, but that ARRA funding is less than the $2.5 million required to cover the costs of construction, engineering and administrative fees for the rehab project.
The commission has requested and been authorized to receive an additional $975,000 from the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority in the form of a long-term low-interest loan.
Unused ARRA grant funds currently allocated to other agencies may also become available. The water department is currently third in line for those funds, should they come in, Oakley said.
The department’s own contingency fund may be tapped to cover additional project costs, as will funds planned for rehab work in two other wastewater basins.
“We will put off basins VII and VIII until we can get some General Assembly funds, or at least get some of this loan paid down,” said Anderson.
Oakley said some of the unanticipated costs came from the state’s requirement that stretches of state highway where cuts are required for line work be repaved, rather than merely trench-patched.
“We’ve got about 6,000 feet of work that is on state highways,” said Oakley.
Some of that expense may be spared depending on the method Luttrell uses to repair or replace the problem sewer lines.
Water officials extended thanks to the community for its patience during the evaluation phase of the project and asked for additional understanding once the rehab work begins.
