Georgetown advances Plant 1 close-out and water-system resilience designs

Georgetown advances Plant 1 close-out and water-system resilience designsGeorgetown City Council approved a $104,655 change order for the near-complete Wastewater Plant 1 upgrade and expansion, alongside nearly $498,000 of engineering work for sewer-pump and water-distribution improvements. The water utility’s proposed designs target standby power, ageing pumping assets and areas supplied by a single water feed.

Council approved Change Order 18, worth $104,655, for additional works at the Wastewater Plant 1 upgrade and expansion; staff said the costs remain within project contingency.

A $318,880 Kentucky Engineering Group contract will design water-line backfeeds for the Ann Mason, Pavilion and White Oak areas, which currently each receive service from a single feed.

Kentucky Engineering Group will also receive $152,170 to assess and design improvements at Pump Station 19, including a possible gravity-sewer alternative to a pump-station redesign.

Magna Engineering was selected for $26,740 of design work for standby diesel generation and automatic transfer capability at Pump Station 9.

Georgetown City Council has approved a set of water and wastewater investments aimed at closing out the city’s Wastewater Plant 1 expansion while addressing points of vulnerability in its sewer and water networks. The most immediate item is a $104,655 Change Order 18 for the Wastewater Plant 1 upgrade and expansion, for which staff said work is rapidly approaching final completion. The change order includes four additions and one credit, and will be funded from the project’s remaining contingency rather than savings. The additions include pump guide rails in a water-containing basin, allowing a pump to be lowered into the structure for draining. The utility also plans a separate unloading pad for vacuum trucks. Staff said the trucks operate virtually around the clock and need disposal locations at both wastewater plants, rather than having to travel only to Plant 2. The order also includes a concrete cap over a sewer line crossing the Cardone parking lot, at the property owner’s request, and a fitting to reline a drop manhole and control flows through the structure. The credit results from changing the planned full-depth reconstruction of the Cardone entrance to milling and resurfacing, after pavement cores indicated the base remains in good condition. Council also authorised $471,050 in Kentucky Engineering Group contracts for two FY27 projects. The larger, $318,880 assignment covers design of water-line backfeeds serving the Ann Mason, Pavilion and White Oak areas. According to utility staff, each area is now supplied by a single feed, leaving customers without water if that line fails. The planned work is part of a broader effort to ensure areas of the distribution system can be supplied from more than one direction. The second Kentucky Engineering Group contract, worth $152,170, covers design and construction administration for work at Pump Station 19 near Speedway in the south of the city. Staff said the station is beyond its useful life and that the study will examine whether a gravity-sewer solution could replace a pump-station redesign. Separately, the council approved a $26,740 Magna Engineering contract for electrical design at Pump Station 9, off Champion Way. The project will provide for a diesel backup generator and automatic transfer switch to keep the station operating through power outages. Staff stressed that the work is unrelated to the North Hamilton pump stations discussed in connection with an affordable-housing proposal. Other approved utility items included $25,549 for a new magnetic flow meter and altitude valve at the Stamping Ground elevated storage tank. Staff said unreliable meter readings have made it difficult to maintain the tank at the required operating elevation. The council approved the utility business items together without recorded opposition.