City uses project savings to upgrade sewage lift station

City General Manager of Infrastructure and Operations Mitch Minken (seated at left) provides details of the sewage lift station project during the Nov. 1 regular council meeting.

Cost savings on two infrastructure projects will make it possible for the City of Swift Current to upgrade a sewage lift station without a need to include this expense in the next capital budget.

Council members approved the upgrading of the sewage lift station through the reallocation of funds within the existing 2021 capital budget during a regular council meeting, Nov. 1.

“It’s really great to see that we’re able to make this project work within existing budget by just having some surplus budget around by being under budget on a couple of projects this year,” Councillor Ryan Plewis said. “So I just want to say great work to our admin team for getting these projects all done. So we’re actually getting more bang for our buck in this year’s capital budget, because it’s something that we would have to otherwise budget for in the coming budget, something now that has been freed up.”

A total of $235,902 in excess funds will be reallocated to upgrade sewage lift station number 12. These funds became available in the 2021 capital budget due to cost savings on the water treatment plant residual management project and the associated upgrading of sewage lift station number seven. The tenders for these projects were lower than the estimated budget amounts.

The purpose of the water treatment plant residual management project is to collect and dispose clarifier sludge and chlorinated filter backwash water from the water treatment plant. This waste is currently discharged into the Swift Current Creek, but updated environmental standards will prohibit this practice in future.

City General Manager of Infrastructure and Operations Mitch Minken provided details of the sewage lift station number 12 project during the meeting.

This lift station is located south of the Innovation Credit Union iPlex. It was constructed in 1991 to service McIntyre industrial park and the residential area south of the Elmwood golf course next to Highway No. 4. It will now be required to serve Munro industrial park, deal with the residual material from the water treatment plant and soon also the flow from sewage lift station number seven.

The project will involve the replacement of two 15 horsepower grinder pumps that were installed when lift station number 12 was originally constructed. They will be replaced with two 30 horsepower pumps. The existing electrical system for the lift station will also be upgraded, the standby generator will be replaced, and an automatic transfer switch will be installed.

“This upgrade will allow for the full build out of the existing South Munro industrial park and provide an alternative measure, rather than a complete rebuild of lift station number 12,” Minken said. “The project will be removed from the 2022 capital budget.”

He noted that it is essential to order the order the components for this upgrade project as soon as possible, because it will take longer to receive items due to the supply chain problems cause by the COVID-19 pandemic.

He anticipated a lead time of 34 weeks to receive the standby generator, but pumps and other related components will have a shorter lead time of 10 to 12 weeks.

“This is definitely due to the supply chain issues that are in the world today,” he said. “This one would normally not be that long a lead time, but with all the pandemic slow downs with shipping and the like, this is the lead time now. We’re hoping that as time moves on that those lead times will shorten so we don’t have to be that far out in front of these projects.”

Boardwalk section of infrastructure project to start:

Minken provided an update on the active transportation project, which includes the expansion of the Chinook Parkway eastwards to Highway No. 4.

One of the final phases of this pathway expansion includes the construction of a boardwalk along a section the Swift Current Creek behind the Regier Honda dealership.

He informed the council meeting that the City was in the final stages of the process to conclude the agreement with the contractor, and he expected construction work to start by Nov. 22.

City Chief Administrative Officer Tim Marcus provided additional details about this phase of the project during a media briefing after the council meeting.

The boardwalk will be 440 feet (134 metres) long and will consist of 11 sections that will be constructed off-site. The initial work by the contractor will involve the installation of foundation screw piles in the creek bank in preparation for the arrival of the boardwalk sections.

Shoreline rehabilitation had to be done before the screw piles can be installed. This rehabilitation work along the bottom part of the shoreline was delayed due to the presence of migratory bird nests. The work could only start after the nesting period was over.