Sycamore City Council grants extra week for water main and roadway improvement project

SYCAMORE – Sycamore City Council approved a change order to Elliott and Wood Inc.’s contract for water main and roadway improvements on Tuesday night, granting $200,000 and seven extra days for the project to be completed.

City Manager Micheal Hall said the water main and roadway improvement project allows the city to replace lead-lined water mains while also removing sections of water lines that weren’t up to par. Over the past several years, the city of Sycamore has dealt with numerous complaints regarding the safety of its water supply, and the project is a part of a broad effort to rectify the city’s ongoing water issues.

“These are just old, deteriorating type of lines, some of them need to be upsized. There was some weird things where a 10-inch line was going down to a 5-inch and then back to a-10 inch,” Hall said. “So there was some sections that were taken out to make it all 10-inch, you know, stuff like that.”

Hall said it’s hard to pinpoint one issue or one problem, but the areas that were focused on were chosen because they’re either old, have lead lining, or something similar.

“Just multitude of issues, it’s age, sizing them right, lead lining, you name it, there’s all those types of things that we just have to do every year,” Hall said.

The initial contract, which was awarded to Elliott and Wood Inc. on March 21 for water main and roadway improvements, was worth $2,580,254.65. The contract called for substantial completion by Sept. 10 and a final completion of the project on Oct. 10. The approved extension gives Elliott and Wood Inc. until Oct. 17 to complete the project and an additional $200,000, according to city documents.

“So these are contingencies, so they had some sidewalk issues, backfill needed to be done, just contingency areas that were, just didn’t realize when they started digging in there that little bit more cost,” Hall said. “So the contingency was just to make sure that we had enough money to cover those types of things.”

The request for an extension and additional funds comes after unplanned and sizable additions in quantities for backfill material and sidewalk led to significant cost increases. The original contract came with the approval of a 5% contingency to address unforeseen items but city staff and a consulting group recommend allocating more.

“City staff and Baxter and Woodman Consulting Engineers recommend a modification of the contract value to $2,780,254.65, and a modification of the completion date to Oct. 17,” City Engineer Mark Bushnell wrote in a letter addressed to Hall provided in the agenda for Tuesday night’s City Council meeting.

The additional costs of the project tally up to $231,654.40 but cost reductions in other areas amount to $109,938, meaning the net total of increased costs associated with the project add up to $121,716.40.

“While this next change does not exceed the 5% limit, staff and the consultant want City Council to be aware of the changes,” Bushnell wrote.

Hall said the change is more than 5%, so the city can ensure the contractor has enough money to finish the project.

Fourth Ward Ald. David Stouffer said Sycamore’s City Council always is looking for ways to improve and maintain the roadways and living conditions for the residents of Sycamore.

“It’s one of the things I really love about Sycamore, it’s always been on [City Council’s] radar, they’re always looking for ways to improve and always looking for creative ways to do that,” Stouffer said.

While the council also is on the lookout for infrastructure improvements, having the city ready for events – like Sycamore’s Pumpkin Festival – is a priority.

“Yeah, that is always the goal,” Hall said. “Always get it done before Pumpkin Fest.”