Philomath council clears way to award low bid and begin contract talks for water treatment plant amid ARPA deadline

The Philomath City Council on Wednesday directed staff to release a notice of intent to award for the city's water treatment plant and to begin contract negotiations following a seven-day protest period, citing a federal ARPA spending deadline.

City Manager (City Manager) told the council staff received two bids and had reviewed both bidders' responsibility with the city attorney, public works director and city engineer. "I can tell you that the, little bid came in at 13,800,000," the City Manager said, adding that both bids were higher than the engineer's estimate and that some optional items could be removed to reduce cost.

The motion the council approved instructs staff to release the intent-to-award notice and, after a seven-day protest period, to enter contract negotiations with the apparent low bidder. Councilor Britt Salsa moved the motion and Councilor Matt Crocker seconded; the council voted "aye" and the motion passed unanimously.

Why it matters: City staff said timetables are tight because the project will use federal ARPA funds that must be spent and reimbursed by the end of the calendar year. The City Manager said staff is pursuing multiple strategies to maximize allowable reimbursements and is working with Business Oregon and state and federal partners to seek any available flexibility.

What staff said will happen next: The City Manager said the notice of intent to award will be released, starting a seven-day protest period; if no successful protest is filed, staff will enter contract negotiations and return a proposed agreement for council approval, likely with a detailed breakout of items the city will omit to reduce cost. "In May, we'll have a letter with the breakdown and the options that we're choosing to not do," the City Manager said.

Council questions and concerns focused on timing and contractor capacity. One councilor asked whether the apparent low bidder has enough personnel to accelerate work; the City Manager said contractor schedules and staffing will be reviewed during the contract phase and staff will try to "front-load" the project where possible but warned a substantial delay could put ARPA reimbursement at risk.

Staff also said some previously incurred reservoir-related costs (about $4,000,000, per the City Manager's statement) may be eligible for reimbursement, which would affect the remaining ARPA balance available for the treatment plant. The City Manager confirmed the ARPA deadline is the end of December and said staff aims to finish spending by November to allow time for reimbursement processing.

A councilor asked that, once the project is complete, the council do a post-mortem to identify causes of prior delays and reduce the chance of similar schedule issues on future projects.

The special meeting adjourned at 7:24 p.m.; council members expect an update at the regular May meeting with the proposed contract highlights, final total price and schedule.