Current Projects

Sewer Project Bids are $23M Over Estimates

by James Finlaw - Herald News: 2/1/2001

A $23 million miscalculation has muddled the future of the city's combined sewer overflow project. The fact that the project will likely cost $23 million more than expected was revealed yesterday at Government Center, when the bids submitted by companies hoping to land the CSO construction project were opened. To the shock and dismay of the officials, the lowest bid entered was $99,057,820. Submitted by J.F.Shea Co.Inc. of Walnut, California, the bid was roughly $23 million higher than the $76 million bid the city had expected to receive. The two other bids were slightly higher, coming in at $99.2 and $101.8 million respectively. "The estimated construction cost we had was $76 million, so obviously this is much higher than that," said Department of Public Works Director Terrence Sullivan. According to Sullivan, the $76 million estimate had come from Camp, Dresser and McKee, the Cambridge-based engineering firm the city hired to design the CSO project.

The city had used the figure when crafting the CSO project's $115 million total budget. As a result of the bids, that price total could soon go up. "Obviously having a price bid like this has a severe effect on our budget, which means we have to go back and assess everything," said Sullivan.

The bids were for the construction of a three-mile-long, 20-foot-wide sewer tunnel beneath the city. The tunnel, which will run 100 feet underground from Swift Street to the intersection of Spring and Pearl Streets, is designed to eliminate the flow of untreated sewage into Mount Hope Bay. The work on the tunnel was set to begin in April, but the project may be delayed as a result of the bid.

"I'm not saying the construction will not start on time, but certainly this throws a wrench in the works," said Sullivan. Sullivan and Lambert said the city will meet with Camp, Dresser and McKee to discuss the miscalculation, and to determine a course of action. "Now we are seeking to have the company come back to us and tell us why the bids are higher than anticipated," Lambert said.

He and Sullivan each noted construction costs have skyrocketed over the past few years. They attributed the high prices to the sizzling real estate market. "Because the market is so hot, they are demanding higher and higher prices," said Lambert, who added that the bids for school construction projects in the city have also been higher than expected. With the city unprepared, and unable to accept the $99 million bid, Sullivan said city officials will meet over the next several days to assess the situation. "We need to take the next couple of days to analyze what happened and come up with some plans and strategies," said Sullivan. "We'll have to review all our options and come up with a plan." he said. Lambert agreed.

Until now , the CSO project had been moving along smoothly. Recently, a $20 million renovation of the sewer treatment plant was completed. The huge tunnel is needed to bolster the city's antiquated and largely ineffective sewer system. The current system is quickly overburdened by even small amounts of rainfall, and frequently overflows. As a result, the city currently dumps almost 1.3 billion gallons of raw sewage and rainwater into Mount Hope Bay annually.

In 1992, District Court Judge Rya Zobel ordered the city to complete the CSO project to come into compliance with the Clean Water Act. The ruling was the result of a lawsuit filed against the city in 1988 by the Conservation Law Foundation. The foundation claimed the city had violated the U.S. Clean Water Act. The court ordered the city to have the entire CSO project completed in December 2004. The fact that the court has instituted deadlines may pose a problem for the city if the work is delayed for a significant amount of time. Sullivan said the court order will be reviewed while city officials figure out what to do next.

<Back