Consideration and Approval of Contract:  Approval of Fort Tuthill Well Cost Sharing and Construction Agreement for electrical line joint trench with DW Tower, LLC in an amount not to exceed $74,000.

1. Staff recommends that the City Council approve the Cost Sharing and Construction Agreement with DW Tower, LLC. in an amount not to exceed $74,000 to share the cost for design, construction and installation of the conduit containing needed electrical infrastructure from Highway 89 to a new second well site at Fort Tuthill (Ft. Tuthill Well #2); and
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute the necessary documentation.

The City intends to drill a second well at Fort Tuthill (known as Ft. Tuthill Well #2), as early as this calendar year and will need a power source for the well once drilling is complete. There is currently inadequate power to the site. This Cost Sharing and Construction Agreement with DW Tower, LLC will give the City the ability to collaborate and cost-share the expense of adding electrical power to the site through an electrical line joint trench. Without the benefit of this Cost Sharing and Construction Agreement, the City would bear 100% of the cost to provide the electrical infrastructure to the well site in the near future.

DW Tower, LLC currently has approval from Coconino County to install a new Verizon cell phone tower adjacent to the City's new well site. This scope of work includes trenching from Highway 89 to the site. DW Tower, LLC is already working with a contractor approved by APS to complete the work. The Cost Sharing and Construction Agreement is a sole-source proposal as DW Tower, LLC already has approval from Coconino County to design, construct and install the cell phone tower and is contracted to oversee the electrical needs to the site.

The cost estimate obtained through DW Tower, LLC to design, construct, and install the electrical infrastructure is $148,000. The agreement drafted between the City of Flagstaff and DW Tower, LLC is for a not-to-exceed amount of $74,000 (one-half of the cost for the activity) and the City will be invoiced upon completion of the work. Water Services has $1.805 million in 202-08-370-3350-0 for well drilling and equipping.

• supports council-adopted (2014) Water Policy F1 for providing adequate water system capacity redundancy for the community
• allows Water Services to meet our Water Services Strategic Plan 2025 standard to ensure the risk of a sustained water delivery shortage is extremely low

On September 4, 2018, the Flagstaff City Council approved a contract for hydrogeological services to oversee a water supply well drilling project. City staff are working through Coconino County to drill a second water well at Fort Tuthill. Electricity will be needed at the site to pump water from that well into the City's water distribution system.  

An alternative to the Cost Sharing and Construction Agreement with DW Tower, LLC would be for the City to be solely responsible for the expense of the design, construction, and installation of conduit to the well site at a later date.

Staff has been working with Coconino County on a second well location at Fort Tuthill for about one year. A previous agreement with the County allows for the City to drill another well within a certain distance of Fort Tuthill Well #1. The City contracted with a hydrogeological firm (ATC Group Services, LLC) to locate a final well site based on a subsurface geophysical survey. During this process, the City was approached by the Coconino County and DW Tower, LLC to discuss electrical needs for the well. With a Verizon cellular tower being constructed adjacent to the well site, with the electrical work being installed in May 2020, the parties asked whether the City would collaborate and share costs to install the electrical utilities.

This project benefits our water customers by saving on the cost to bring electrical services to this new water well.