Tarpon Springs secures $180,000 in sole-source contracts for wastewater treatment facility upgrades

Tarpon Springs secures $180,000 in sole-source contracts for wastewater treatment facility upgradesThe Board of Commissioners unanimously approved equipment replacements from Xylem and Ovivo to address recent pump failures and support high-level disinfection processes at the city's 1986-built plant.

The board approved a $100,000 sole-source purchase from Xylem Water Solutions for three Flygt submersible pumps for the AWWTF's return of activated sludge (RAS) basin.

An $80,000 contract was awarded to Ovivo USA for OEM replacement parts servicing the facility's aeration basins, clarifiers, and sand filters.

Commissioners also authorized an $80,000 renewal with Concrete On Call for batch mix materials utilized by the Streets and Stormwater Division.

The Tarpon Springs Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a series of water and stormwater procurement contracts during its June 23, 2026, meeting, securing critical equipment for its Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility (AWWTF). The board authorized a $100,000 sole-source purchase from Xylem Water Solutions USA for three replacement Flygt submersible pumps. The pumps are utilized for the continuous return of activated sludge (RAS) into the plant's biological treatment processes. According to meeting documents, the facility recently experienced two consecutive pump failures that exhausted its spare inventory. The city originally standardized the RAS basin with Flygt pumps over 20 years ago to accommodate space constraints, and retrofitting the mounting and adapter plates for a different model was deemed cost-prohibitive. The three pumps were secured at a 5% volume discount, bringing the per-pump price to $27,484.67. Additionally, the city awarded an $80,000 single-source contract to Ovivo USA for OEM replacement parts and services. The AWWTF was constructed in 1986 using treatment equipment from Eimco Water Technologies, which was later acquired by Ovivo. The proprietary parts will support the facility's aeration basins, clarifiers, and gravity sand filters. City documents emphasized that exact-match replacement parts are necessary to maintain Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) high-level disinfection requirements and minimize process downtime. In a separate action, the board renewed an $80,000 cooperative contract with Concrete On Call for concrete mix materials. The materials, which include ready mix and batch mix concrete, will be utilized by the Public Works Department's Streets and Stormwater Division for ongoing infrastructure maintenance. All water, wastewater, and stormwater procurements were approved unanimously as part of the consent agenda without further discussion.