At the September 11, 2023, Morenci City Council meeting, the Morenci City Council approved the construction contract for the 2021 CDBG Water-Related Infrastructure Grant that was awarded to the City of Morenci. This grant was obtained to do the following work:
• Reconstruction of Locust Street: Locust Street will be reconstructed from North Street to Washington Street. This will include repaving, water service lines and mains, and sanitary mains.
• Reconstruction of Salisbury Street: Salisbury Street will be reconstructed from Main Street to Coomer Street. This will include repaving, water service lines and mains, and sanitary mains.
• Iron Removal Filters: The filter media of the Iron Removal Filters will be replaced.
• Lift Station: A new lift station will be constructed in front of the Water Treatment Plant.
A contract was awarded to Salenbien Excavating & Trucking of Dundee, Michigan for this project. They were the successful bidder out of two (2) sealed bids received. The other sealed bid received was from Ohio Excavating. Salenbien Excavating & Trucking was awarded the contract at a cost of $4,118,576.85.
For this project, the City of Morenci was provided with a grant of $2.5 million dollars from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). Funding for this project will be from the following funds:
Existing Funds in CDBG Fund: $345,202.00
Bond Proceeds: $1,060,418.30
Funds from Water Fund FY 23 / 24: $150,000.00
Funds from Sewer Fund FY 23 / 24: $150,000.00
Funds from General Fund FY 23 / 24: $318,576.85
Funds from Major Streets FY 23 / 24: $50,000.00
Subtotal: $2,074,197.15
MEDC Match: $2,500,000.00
Total with MEDC Match: $4,574,197.15
The total cost of the project is slated as the following, as the City of Morenci must pay for construction engineering of the project and hold a contingency cost in the event that there are unforeseen issues that come up during construction that are outside of the scope of the construction contract with Salenbien Excavating & Trucking:
Salenbien Contract: $4,118,576.85
Construction Engineering: $228,550.00
Subtotal with Engineering: $4,347,126.85
Difference for Contingency: $227,070.30
A definite schedule will be released soon. At this time, the City of Morenci has been given a preliminary schedule that includes the following:
Iron Removal Filter Media: Once the filter media is procured, which could be, at earliest, the end of 2023.
Lift Station: Salenbien Excavating & Trucking is planning to start construction on the Lift Station by early Spring 2024 at the earliest. This is due to the timing of materials and shop drawings through the winter.
Streets: We are actively working on finalizing the timetable for the construction of Locust Street and Salisbury Street and will provide updates as they are available. The City of Morenci and the contractor are cognizant of the school calendar and would like to minimize any impact that construction will have on the schools for the construction on Locust Street. It is expected that Salisbury Street will begin in Spring 2024.
For more information on City of Morenci projects, please visit www.CityofMorenci.org. Additionally, the City of Morenci releases its City Council Packets on the City of Morenci’s website the Friday before every regular City Council Meeting. Meeting minutes of City Council Meetings are posted to the website within eight days of the meeting occurring.