Bids opened for basin

City officials were scheduled to open bids for two wastewater treatment plant projects.

Bids only came in for one of them.

Portland Board of Works on Thursday opened bids for the construction of an equalization basin at the city’s wastewater treatment plant. There were no bids for a tandem project to build a wet weather pump station.

The board also approved the final contract to sell the former Sheller-Globe south building to Chad Fifer.

Jutte Excavating of Fort Recovery was the low bidder for the equalization basin at $4.57 million. Other bids were $5.2 million from R.G. Zachrich Construction of Defiance, Ohio, $5.21 million from Cobalt Civil of Winchester and $5.73 million from VTF Excavation of Celina, Ohio.

There were no bids for the wet weather pump station.

Jeff Hersha of Fort Wayne’s Jones and Henry Engineers, which is handling construction services and providing a resident project representative for the work, explained to bidders in attendance that because there were no bids for the wet weather pump station he will need to consult with Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and the State Revolving Fund Loan Program on next steps. He said he will also research why none of the firms put in a bid to construct the wet weather pump station.

The work is part of the city’s agreed order with IDEM, with the equalization basin and wet weather pump station as a single component.

“It takes both parts … to meet the statutory requirements of the long-term control plan,” explained Hersha after the meeting.

Board of works members Jerry Leonhard and Steve McIntosh, absent Mayor John Boggs, tabled the bids for review.

The bids for the equalization basin came in between 50% and 100% higher than the most recent engineer’s estimate of about $2.9 million in March. (The estimate for the wet weather pump station was about $9.3 million.)

The city’s agreed order with IDEM, signed in 2008, is intended to eliminate combined sewer overflows (CSOs) in the city by increasing the wastewater plant's capacity. (CSOs occur when the amount of water in the system exceeds its capacity, causing untreated stormwater and wastewater to be discharged into waterways.) In addition to the equalization basin and wet weather pump station, it also calls for the construction of an oxidation ditch.

Once completed, the new system will allow excess water to be pumped into the equalization basin during times when it is overloaded. That water can then be pumped back and treated before being discharged. (IDEM rules require that the equalization basin, which also has mixing and aeration, must be cleared within 72 hours.)

Construction of the equalization basin is expected to take 330 days, with the pump station to take 515 days.

Portland City Council on Monday approved an ordinance for a $23.8 million bond for wastewater treatment plant improvements, including the equalization basin and wet weather pump station. It will need to be approved on second reading before going into effect.

Leonhard and McIntosh also approved the final purchase agreement with Fifer for the Sheller-Globe south property, 510 S. Bridge St. City attorney Wes Schemenaur said he has been told Fifer would sign the contract Friday.

The contract spells out that the city will follow through on environmental remediation that is currently underway. Any future remediation would be the responsibility of the landowner. IWM Consulting is currently working for the city to update the Phase I environmental study on the property.

Once that is complete, the sale process can move to the closing process.

The board of works in September 2022 accepted an offer of $50,000 to sell the property to Fifer. The environmental process and contract negotiations have been ongoing since then. (Fifer has been allowed some access to the property through a limited use agreement.)