Pearland City Council approves contract for sewer line rehabilitation

Pearland City Council on March 27 unanimously approved a sanitary sewer rehabilitation contract in the Old Town Site and Barry Rose area for a $2.88 million bid from Texas Pride Utilities.

“We have a good history with Texas Pride,” Interim City Manager Trent Epperson said while recommending Texas Pride Utilities.

Six contractors submitted bids for the rehabilitation contract during the March 2 bid ranging from $2.88 million to $4.13 million. Texas Pride Utilities was approved due to it being the lowest responsible bidder, which is the lowest bid that meets the specific requirements and terms and conditions of the invitation to bid, according to Pearland City Council purchasing policies.

The construction contract includes over 20,000 linear feet of sewer rehabilitation in existing sanitary sewer pipes that caused inflow and infiltration issues, Epperson said.

Inflow refers to stormwater that quickly flows into sewers through roof drain downspouts while infiltration refers to groundwater that seeps into sewer pipes through holes and faulty connections. Some of the main reasons for the rehabilitation are to reduce inflow and infiltration while reducing the size of the plant needed to handle normal wet weather conditions, Epperson said.

Epperson said rehabilitation projects are more cost effective than building larger basins with larger capacities.

The project to replace the failing infrastructure with a new solid-wall, high-density polyethylene pipe also includes the rehabilitation of existing maintenance hole rings, cones, covers, lining and service reconnections.

Texas Pride has 270 days to complete the project. Construction is proposed to begin in May and be completed by February, according to the agenda.