Bids Opened On EDA Grant Project

Bids on an Economic Development Administration (EDA) grant project were opened by the City of Hillsboro Tuesday afternoon, April 28.

The city was awarded the grant in October of 2017 by the federal agency, which will provide $1.4 million. The Hillsboro Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) is funding the $600,000 local match.

The project will take a new 12-inch water line from the downtown water tower to the current industrial water tower site on Industrial Loop.

This new line will allow the city to take the West Elm Street ground storage water tank out of service and abandon the line from that tank to near the Hillsboro Police Department on North Waco Street.

City Manager Frank Johnson pointed out the ground storage tank has continued to experience leaks over the years leading to the loss of water.

The Public Works Department has also experienced numerous breaks in the aging cross-country water line being abandoned.

There will also be a water line installed from Spur 579 north along Highway 81 out to the old airport property, which is owned by the HEDC.

HEDC Administrator Arthur Mann said that having water to the property will make the 300-acre tract much more attractive to prospects looking for new sites.

Eighteen companies submitted proposals before the 2 p.m. bid deadline Tuesday.

The project was bid with a base, which included the downtown water line, and an alternate that takes the water to the old airport property.

The base bids ranged from a low of $708,345.75 up to $1,557,303.00. On the alternate the numbers ranged from $948,863.00 to $1,573,090.00.

Circle H Construction of Midlothian had the two lowest bids for a total of $1,657,208.75,

MRB Group, formerly BSP Engineers, is investigating the low bidder and it expected to have a recommendation for the city council Tuesday evening, May 5, when a contract could be awarded.

The city learned of the possibility of the EDA grant through Dorthy Jackson, regional and economic development manager with the Heart of Texas Council of Governments (HOTCOG).

She arranged for a site visit by Cornell Wesley, the regional EDA representative at the time.

After a brief presentation by city staff, Wesley recommend the submittal of an application. Approval was received a short time later.

According to Mrs. Jackson, when engineering and administration fees and a contingency are taken into consideration, the project will come in within budget.

The EDA project is part of the overall plan that will erect a new 500,000-gallon elevated storage tank on Morrow Drive to improve water pressure in the industrial park and across the portion of the city served by the downtown water tower, according to engineer Tony Beach with MRB Group.

The new tower will also provide the water needed to continue attracting new industrial prospects to the park, according to Mann.

The city has secured a loan from Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) for construction of the tower. The project also includes a 150,000-gallon ground storage tank and pump station at the site of the existing 250,000-gallon industrial water tower, which will be taken out of service.

The tank and pump station will be used to fill the new larger tower.

Eight-inch water lines in the industrial park along Morrow Drive and Spur 579 are also scheduled to be upgraded to 12-inch lines.

MRB submitted plans to TWDB and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for pre-approval earlier this year.

TCEQ is expected to issue a letter of approval today (Monday, May 4), with the TWDB approval expected soon after.

At that point, the city will be cleared to accept bids on that phase of the project.

Construction on the water line project is set at 13 months, and the water tower project will take about 14 months, once awarded.