The city of Española is trying to push through major water-related initiatives as it heads into the holiday season.
As early as Thursday (12/18), the City Council could hire an engineering firm for six water and wastewater projects and other improvements outlined in a 2000 master plan.
The Council will also discuss a comprehensive plan for water rate hikes being proposed by Acting City Manager Veronica Albin. According to Albin’s plan, a $50 utility bill would increase to $57.01 in 2009, $61.10 in 2010, $64.23 in 2011 and $67.57 in 2012. Cumulatively, that’s a 35 percent increase over today’s rates.
In order to raise rates, the Council first has to pass an ordinance, a process that requires public hearings that have yet to be scheduled. The rate increases could be approved as early as January.
Albin’s plan also makes recommendations for spending approximately $2.7 million in accumulated cash from the city’s infrastructure gross-receipts tax — namely, by paying down outstanding debt and initiating a rainy-day fund for emergency utility repairs.
Both the engineering contract and the water rates plan are tied into a funding decision by the state Water Trust Board, which was scheduled to meet Wednesday (12/17) afternoon. At that meeting, city administrators will argue that they should be able to keep $5.6 million in state money originally earmarked for a project that would have diverted water rights from the Rio Grande to a surface-water treatment plant.That project ran into legal and financial obstacles, and it was downgraded to a series of utility-line improvements. Those improvements are included in the new engineering proposal.
Although the scope of the engineering proposal is limited to items in the master plan, Albin said it would effectively bring the chosen firm into an on-call relationship with the city.
The Council rejected such an arrangement with engineering firm Souder Miller in May 2007, after a long-standing contract with Molzen Corbin expired. Councilor Alfred Herrera, who heavily criticized the 2007 selection process, said the city has learned that it is neither efficient nor cost-effective to contract on a project-by-project basis.
“I have six contracts with Souder Miller,” Albin said. “I just don’t think it’s cost-effective and certainly not time-effective.”
Albin is married to Doug Albin, an engineer for Molzen Corbin. She said she has nothing to do with the selection process.
Five entities have applied for the job: Souder Miller, Molzen Corbin, Wilson and Company, Sonoran, and a partnership consisting of Engineers, Inc. and CDM. City Planning Director and evaluation committee member Cyrus Samii said the proposals were evaluated Monday and the committee plans to interview three candidates.