Bids for Rehoboth Beach ocean outfall project revealed

The controversial Rehoboth Beach ocean wastewater discharge project moved a step closer Thursday when bids were open for the ocean outfall part of the $52.5 million project.

If approved by city engineers, Manson Construction Co. will be the primary company on the outfall project. The Seattle company submitted the lowest of three bids at $27,655,850.

The bids were open at the Rehoboth Beach Volunteer Fire Department by H. Jeff Sturdevant, principal manager for GHD, the company overseeing the project.

Manson's bid was $5.3 million lower than that of Weeks Marine Inc. of Cranford, New Jersey, and $15.8 million lower than the bid submitted by Tampa's American Bridge.

"We'll regroup after the engineers take a look at the bids and they are approved," Rehoboth Beach City Manager Sharon Lynn said. "It's nice to be moving forward. It's been a long time coming." 

The plan for the outfall project calls for dumping treated wastewater into the Atlantic Ocean about a mile east of where vacationers to Rehoboth swim. It was created in response to a court order from the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control that the city stop discharging wastewater into the Lewes & Rehoboth Canal near the entrance to Rehoboth Bay.

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Last week, bids were received for the new ocean outfall pumping station, a 24-inch force main pipe and the upgrade to the wastewater treatment plant.

Allan Myers, headquartered in Worcester, Pennsylvania, with a construction office in Dover, submitted the low bid for the Rehoboth Beach WWTP CIP Upgrade Phase 1 project at $2,256,555.

The company also won the contract for the Rehoboth Beach WWTP Effluent Pumping Station, with a low bid of $1,768,555.

A-Del Construction, headquartered in Newark, was low bid for the Rehoboth Beach Force Main $5,700,447.

These bids must be approved by the city before contracts are officially awarded to the companies.

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control gave final approval on May 25 to Rehoboth Beach's plan to build the treated sewer outflow. 

DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin said at the time that the plan would eliminate a major source of pollution into Sussex County's inland bays. He also said he had been convinced the plan "met all legal, scientific and technical standards for bringing the city into compliance with its wastewater discharge."

The project consists of a new pump station and a 24-inch force main/pipe, which are required to convey the treated effluent to the ocean outfall and to provide the head required to pump the effluent through diffusers located 6,000 feet offshore in water approximately 40 feet deep.

The approved pipeline alignment begins at the existing Rehoboth Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant, then follows the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal north to Grove Park. The pipeline will then turn northeast to Henlopen Avenue and continue to the Deauville Beach parking area and terminate in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 6,000 feet from the parking area.

The pipeline from the Rehoboth Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant to the ocean outfall was sized to handle the summer peak flow.

As part of the overall project analysis, a detailed alignment study was completed to determine the best routing of the force main considering such issues as cost, environmental issues, permitting, potential interferences, traffic control and public concerns.

The preferred alignment was selected based on the recommendations of the Rehoboth Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant Effluent Force Main Alignment Study.

Mobilization of equipment will begin in October with an anticipated construction completion in April.

At the commissioner workshop meeting scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, commissioners will be discussing with the city's engineers, GHD, and Sussex County representatives, matters related to the construction of the city's wastewater outfall, the various capital improvement projects at the wastewater treatment plant, the contractual arrangement between the city and county, and any other related issues. 

One of the terms of the subaqueous lands permit for the outfall is for the city to perform a  Benthic Sampling Plan. This consists of taking samples from the ocean bottom in the area of the outfall prior to construction and for three years after construction. 

Samples are to be taken in the spring and summer of each year and analyzed for sediment characteristics and organisms. The samples will be taken to a depth of about 4 inches. This study is to evaluate the ocean bottom recovery from the construction activity and to assess any impact of the operation of the outfall.

The contracted firm took the first round of samples on June 1 and 2.

Reach Jerry Smith at jsmith17@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JerrySmithTNJ.