This Council memorandum and contract is a follow-up to the Council work session held on March 21, 2016.   In October, 2009, Council approved a professional services contract with HDR Engineering, Inc. to begin preparing an integrated water plan (IWP) for the City of Billings.  The result of that contract was the development of six alternate strategies for the plan that explored water conservation issues, water reuse opportunities, identified resource efficiencies, incorporated environmental protection elements, and provided continual learning opportunities and best practices models.  Following the public participation portion of this planning process, staff selected a preferred alternate consisting of a hybrid mixture of three of the original strategies.   This was the goal of the original contract for the Integrated Water Plan and it was completed by the City in 2011 (IWP2011).   
 
Staff desired to wait until this time for the 2016 Integrated Water Plan Contract to proceed with the next phase of the IWP because it will use the growth projections recently completed by the Planning Department.  In addition, staff was waiting for closure from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality regarding the nutrient standards and the subsequent requirements.  The final product of the contract referenced in this memorandum will provide a clear and detailed action plan, in essence a business plan for the next 20 years for the City regarding water.  This business plan will be used to define water resource CIP projects and their timing that will support the overall goals and objectives of the City and focus on an integrated approach to the City’s water-related needs and operations.  The timing of this contract and work product is critical considering the water rights limitations facing the City in the future.  In addition, this plan will define a water conservation program plan and will also address the vulnerability of the single point source of water currently in use.

The City Council may:
  
Approve this contract for the Integrated Water Use Plan Contract for Professional Engineering Services; or
 
Not approve this contract.  If not approved, the direction and results from the original contract for the integrated water plan will not move forward.
 

Funding for this amendment is included in the FY 2016 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) approved by Council on March 23, 2015 for the project titled “Integrated Water Plan and New Water Treatment Plant Land Analysis” for $1,000,000.  This funding is also included in the approved FY 2016 budget for the Public Works Department.  The total cost for this project is $507,000 that includes approximately $307,000 for preliminary engineering and $200,000 for site evaluations.