Less than $11,000 separated the two low sealed bids received by the city’s June 23 deadline for a sewer line upgrade project planned this summer.

Owensville aldermen at their July 3 meeting awarded a wastewater system rehabilitation project worth just over $436,000 to a Rolla construction firm which has completed several previous projects for the city.

The city received five completed bids for the project and two other firms inquired but did not submit a bid.

Donald Maggi, Inc., quoted $280,129.80 for the base bid and $156,460.20 for the alternate for the overall low bid of $436,590 for the entire project.

The project’s base bid will include installation of 1,882 linear feet of 8-inch PVC sewer main pipe along with 28 service connections to lateral lines. There are also eight 4-foot concrete manholes to be installed.

The option bid listed as option 1 includes installation of 2,008 linear feet of 12-inch PVC sewer main, four service connections and seven 4-foot concrete manholes.

KJ Unnerstall Construction submitted a base bid of $287,776 and sought $159,583 for the alternate option 1 for a total of $447,359.

Mid-State Pipeline Maintenance bid the project for $493,688 with a base bid of $313,844 and $179,844 for option 1.

The two highest bids were from PCX Construction ($848,710 for the base and option 1) and Kuesel Excavating, Co., Inc., which bid the project for $859,441.

The project is expected to be completed yet this year and is included in annual and continuing appropriations by city officials to support an ongoing plan to reduce storm water infiltration and inflow (I&I) into the waste water treatment plant.  The plan is part of the city’s agreement through an Abatement Order on Consent (AOC) with the  Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Problems with excessive storm water reaching the city’s sewer treatment plant off of Baker Road east of town brought about the DNR action.

The city has spent about a half million dollars a year to upgrade aging sewer mains and manholes in an effort to reduce unwanted water in the sanitary sewer system.

This portion of the project will include replacing clay sewer mains in several alleyways in the East Monroe and East Madison neighborhoods near Cash Saver. Another is in an alley between Benton and Spring. Another section scheduled to receive new PVC lines is the area behind Jahabow and East Springfield Road toward Highway 28 through a primarily wooded area, according to the city’s public works director Jeff Fahrenholtz. Work could begin as soon as August, said Fahrenholtz, depending on manufacturing schedules for the concrete manhole structures.