Engineer Ross Hillsman (second from right) with the infrastructure consulting firm AECOM opens bids for the city’s upcoming wastewater treatment plant and improvements project as council members and Mayor Tim Glenn (second from right) observe during the regular meeting of the Dysart City Council on Feb. 9, 2022. Photo by Ruby F. Bodeker

It was an expensive night at the most recent meeting of the Dysart City Council as two large bid packages were approved, setting the stage for both an updated city lagoon and street improvements along Crisman Street.

Shortly after the meeting began, engineer Ross Hillsman with the infrastructure consulting firm AECOM opened the bids for the city’s upcoming wastewater treatment plant and improvements project.

The lagoon project was made necessary to comply with changes to ammonia standards monitored by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) which must comply with federal water quality rules.

There were four bids submitted for the lagoon project which had a cost estimate of $5.23 million, Hillsman told the council prior to opening the bid envelopes.

Bidders for the lagoon project included Boomerang of Anamosa, Spring Lake Construction of Ankeny, WRH, Inc. of South Amana, and Woodruff Construction of Fort Dodge.

The lowest bidder was WRH with a bid of $4,294,311.00 and a five percent bid bond.

The next closest bid was Boomerang with a bid of $4,376,869.50, followed by Woodruff with a bid of $4,719,453.10 and Spring Lake Construction with a high bid of $5,196,331.96.

After reading through the bids, Hillsman recommended the council award the lagoon project to WRH.

“Are you familiar with WRH?” Mayor Tim Glenn asked Hillsman.

Hillsman said he was before adding: “They’re good contractors has been my experience.”

WRH is a general contractor specializing in water treatment, wastewater treatment, and flood mitigation among other services according to the company’s website.

The Dysart lagoon improvement project was awarded to WRH out of South Amana by the council subject to final review by Hillsman.

“We’re a million dollars lower than the engineer’s estimate, that’s not bad,” Mayor Glenn said before moving on to the Crisman Street project.

Crisman Street reconstruction

Jeff Morrow with Anderson-Bogert Engineers opened the bid packages for the Crisman Street reconstruction project. Project plans include a complete tear out and replacement of the street from Sherman to Park streets along Dysart City Park’s west side in order to replace the sanitary sewer system in the area and the water main piping as well as hook up to the storm sewer system.

The project’s engineering estimate came in at $800,000 and there were four bidders for the project including Hatch Grading & Contracting of Dysart, OEL Construction Services of Steamboat Rock, Petersen Hudson Hardware Plumbing and Heating of Hudson, and Lodge Construction of Clarksville.

The lowest bidder was Hatch Grading & Contracting with a bid of $638,486.09 and a 10 percent bid bond.

The next closest bid was Lodge Construction with a bid of $682,072.60, followed by OEL Construction with a bid of $733,293.02, and Petersen Hudson Hardware Plumbing and Heating with a high bid of $734,700.66.

After reading through the bids, Morrow recommended the council award the Crisman Street project to Hatch.

“They’re very reputable,” Morrow said of the Dysart based construction firm. “I don’t have any problem awarding it.”

The Crisman Street reconstruction project was awarded to Hatch Grading & Contracting by the council unanimously following a roll call vote.

Other business

As part of the reports from city employees, Director Julie Scadden with Dysart Ambulance Service told the council the Tama County Board of Supervisors was beginning work on a resolution that would make emergency medical services an essential county service funded by a tax levy. Such a measure must go before voters in the county and receive 60 percent of the vote before it can be implemented.

Public Works superintendent Shawn Fisher reported to the council there was a water main break and that he was still looking for the leak.

City clerk Tabby Kaiser told the council new distribution transformers had been ordered but shipment is still 40 to 50 weeks out. Kaiser said the city has enough transformers on hand for Hatch Development to finish seven houses in Westview Estates. Supply chain issues, difficulty with specialized steel procurement, and an increasing need have all been cited by the utility industry as reasons for the long wait times for transformers.