Staff recommends the City Council award a contract for W.O. 22-40: Water Main Extension, Grey Eagle Ditch to Arlington Avenue, in the amount of $145,999, to Askin Construction.

Construction of W.O. 22-40: Water Main Extension Grey Eagle Ditch to Arlington Avenue installs approximately 390 lineal feet of 12-inch PVC water main between the Grey Eagle Ditch and Arlington Avenue, south of South Frontage Road. This water main installation completes a two-feed system (loop) that provides service redundancy for the Agri-Center Subdivision, and completes the South Frontage Road Water Main Loop project identified in the CIP.  Creating a water main loop generally improves water quality and allows water service to be maintained during water main breaks.  This water main will provide redundancy to about 90 homes currently served from a dead end main installed in 1957.

The project was advertised on November 11, 18, 25, 2022 and December 2, 2022, in the Yellowstone County News and on the City's website. Bids were opened December 6, 2022. Four (4) bids were received. Askin Construction submitted the lowest responsible bid for W.O. 22-40. 

City Council may:

• Award W.O. 22-40: Water Main Extension Grey Eagle Ditch to Arlington Avenue, to Askin Construction in the amount of $145,999; or
• Not Award a Contract and reject all bids. If the contract is not awarded, the loop will not be constructed, redundancy will not be created, and the main will function as a dead-end main.

The following bids were received:

Contractor	Total Bid
Askin Construction	$145,999.00
Western Municipal Construction	$261,633.00
JR Civil	$308,332.65
Earth Movers Excavation, Inc.	$278,257.69

While there is a discrepancy between high and low bids, the low bid is close to the engineer's estimate and staff considers it a reasonable bid.  Staff considers the higher bids a reflection of the limited contractors with availability to perform the work. The project was budgeted in FY23 using Water Funds.  There is sufficient budget to award this contract.