Kodiak council to vote on $100,000 for aging wastewater plant electrical controls

The electrical gear that runs Kodiak's wastewater treatment plant is at or near the end of its useful life, city staff warn. The Kodiak City Council is scheduled to vote Thursday, Aug. 20, on moving $100,000 to a new project to replace the plant's motor control centers and variable frequency drives.

If the council delays or declines to adopt, which staff do not recommend, the equipment will "continue to degrade which could result in incorrect operation of the WWTP," Interim City Manager Tim Putney wrote in the agenda item report.

The money would come from the Sewer Deferred Maintenance Project. Staff would assign $95,000 to professional services and $5,000 to salaries and benefits. The plant was built in 1975 and last upgraded in 2000. Its motor control centers mix Siemens and Allen Bradley equipment, and staff say replacement parts are getting harder to find. Control problems also occur when the starters are placed in "hand" mode.

The same resolution would authorize a professional services agreement with Jacobs Engineering Group for a feasibility study, a 10 percent predesign and a preliminary construction cost estimate. Jacobs priced the work at a $60,000 lump sum in its July 22 proposal, and the contract caps the city's payment at that figure, with a completion date of March 15, 2027. The resolution's text, though, approves the agreement in an amount not to exceed $75,000. **Nothing in the packet explains the difference.** Council approval is required because the city manager cannot sign contracts above $50,000.

Jacobs has done past electrical and controls work at the plant. City code requires that providers of professional services be selected on experience and qualifications, with **price not a factor** in the selection. Jacobs will evaluate phased replacement options meant to limit operational impacts and align with ongoing programmable logic controller upgrades. The study is meant to support funding for a future capital project.

The special meeting is set for 12:30 p.m. and opens with public comments, limited to three minutes per speaker.