City of Lawrence

Memorandum

Department of Utilities

TO:	Dave Corliss, City Manager Cynthia Boecker, Assistant City Manager Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager
FROM:	Mike Lawless, Assistant Director of Utilities
CC:	Dave Wagner, Director of Utilities Philip Ciesielski – Asst. Director of Utilities Beth Frailey Krishtalka – Management Analyst
DATE:	April 2, 2009
RE:	April 7, 2009 Agenda Item –

Please include the following item on the City Commission agenda for consideration at the April 7, 2009 meeting:

Authorize the City Manager to enter into a Pipeline License Agreement with BNSF Railway Company in conjunction with Pump Station No. 25 and Force Main Upgrade, Project No. CS0707.

Project Details

The 2003 Wastewater Master Plan identified improvements required to Pump Station PS25 which is located in the East Hills Business Park.  The system upgrades are to provide expanded sanitary sewer capacity to the areas east of O’Connell Road and north and south of K10/23rd Street including the East Hills Business Park and the former Farmland property. These improvements include expanding the firm pumping capacity of PS25 from 0.97 MGD to 3.0 MGD with the capability to expand to 6.0 MGD in the future and the construction of a parallel forcemain. The improvements also provide for reliability and safety enhancements to the pump station. The project is included in the Department of Utilities Capital Improvements Plan and is scheduled to be completed in 2009. The additional capacity of PS25 will work in conjunction with the new Pump Station 49, which is currently completing construction as part of a county benefit district to provide current, and future, areas of the City southeast of 23rd Street and O’Connell Road sanitary sewer service. PS49 will initially collect flows and pump them north to PS25 which discharges to the existing Kaw Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The alignment of the new forcemain will cross the BNSF Railway Company tracks just north of the East Hills Business Park. In order to cross BNSF right-of-way, a pipeline license agreement must be executed and returned with the appropriate fee and insurance requirements. One of the insurance requirements is to provide railroad protective liability insurance during the construction of the project. BNSF, through the license agreement, provides the option to purchase a railroad protective liability policy for $1,000. Since the City is self-insured and based on previous utilities projects that have crossed BNSF right-of-way, staff believes this option is in the best interest of the City. The fee for the using the BNSF right-of-way for the 25-year term of the agreement is $2,500.

Project Funding 

The project will be funded through the reallocation of $3,400,000.00 from the 2007 revenue bond fund. The project is included in the 2009 Capital Improvement Program as well as the 2009 Rate Plan.

Recommendation 

Authorize the City Manager to enter into a Pipeline License Agreement with BNSF Railway Company in conjunction with Pump Station No. 25 and Force Main Upgrade, Project No. CS0707.