Greeley council approves next downtown stormwater contract after questions about project scope

The Greeley City Council voted 7-0 Tuesday to approve Item 11, authorizing a professional-services contract with Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction Company LLC for the downtown stormwater capital improvement program. The contract covers the next preconstruction phase of the city’s downtown drainage work, including program management, model validation, public outreach and preparation for key capital projects tied to the 12th Street Outfall.

Mayor Dale Hall pulled the item from the consent agenda and pressed staff on what portion of the broader stormwater effort the contract would actually cover. Hall said he was trying to understand “how many projects are we getting for this money” and whether the city would need to increase the contract later to reach its larger goals.

Sean Chambers, director of water and sewer utilities and interim director of stormwater, said the answer to that last question was “yes, absolutely.” He said this phase is focused on setting up the program, validating the stormwater model used to prioritize projects, educating the public and moving the city toward the most urgent downtown work.

Chambers said the first priorities are Segment 1 and Segment 2 of the 12th Street Outfall, which he described as the critical path for serving immediate downtown stormwater needs. Segment 1 would collect stormwater around the Civic Campus and feed it into the outfall system, while Segment 2 includes railroad crossings and completion of the 12th Street Outfall infrastructure. He said those projects are essential for downtown public safety, public health, property protection and the city’s obligations under its land-exchange agreement with Weld County.

Hall said he wanted clearer “bookends” on future phases so council could better track what the city is paying for as the work expands. Chambers said the 12th Street Outfall elements are believed to cost about $125 million in capital construction, while the broader stormwater need citywide is roughly $300 million. He added that an earlier contract of about $1 million had already been approved and that the agreement before council narrows the work to what needs to be done over the next 12 months.

After the discussion, council approved the resolution unanimously.