The Kenai City Council passed an ordinance that would increase estimated revenues and appropriations in the water and sewer special revenue and water and sewer improvements capital project funds, awarding a professional services agreement and corresponding purchase order for Mission Avenue Water Main repairs. The city entered into a term service agreement with HDL Engineering Consultants LLC in May 2020 after the request for proposal process to provide professional engineering services on water, sewer, and wastewater capital improvement projects.
The project will provide the installation of several new water main valves to isolate 400 feet of piping and installing a new replacement service line from the main to the curb stop valve in an effort to prevent erosion from creating an eventual interruption to services to properties in the area.
The City Council adopted the substitute to Ordinance No. 3247-2021 and City Manager Paul Ostrander explained the difference between the original ordinance and the substitute ordinance:
“So when this ordinance was originally drafted, if you look at the appropriation section, it was done improperly, primarily because Finance Director (Terry) Eubank was out of the office and Mr. (Scott) Curtin and I tried to figure out how to do it and we couldn’t. When Mr. Eubank got back in the office, he recognized that we had done it incorrectly, so you now have a substitute. The only change is the appropriation section has been modified so that our bean counters are happy.”
Ostrander was asked if there was a timetable of the project:
“This appropriates the money for both design and construction. We are hoping to do some of the work yet this year, if possible. If that’s not possible it would happen first thing in the spring, but this does appropriate $20,000 for the design and $130,000 for construction. So this appropriates all the money needed for the project to completion.”
It’s believed that the water main has been in place since 1964. With the ongoing bluff erosion in the area, the main is now nearing the exposed edge of the bluff face.
