ALLENTOWN – Municipal officials may know in early August how many companies want the job of constructing new waste water treatment infrastructure in Allentown.
During a presentation to the mayor and Borough Council on June 11, Borough Engineer Carmela Roberts said more than a dozen entities picked up plans and specifications for the project when they became available.
Municipal officials will now wait to see how many companies submit a bid that contains their estimated cost to complete the work.
“Your treatment plant is in quite bad condition at the moment,” Roberts told municipal officials and residents. “There is good interest (from potential bidders). We are projecting to receive bids on Aug. 3. That would put you (Borough Council) in a position to award a contract by mid-August. We think we could have a notice to proceed on Oct. 1. We are close to the dates you were hoping to have.”
Roberts said it is anticipated that construction of the new waste water treatment infrastructure could take 16 months. She said the estimated cost of the project is $3.2 million.
Roberts’ firm designed the plans for the new facility, which will replace Allentown’s aging waste water treatment plant on Breza Road. The new treatment facility will be built at the same location.
Roberts described the scope of the upgrades that are being planned in what she has described as a “package plant.”
She explained the treatment process for waste water, including ultraviolet disinfection. After waste water that enters the plant has been treated, the resulting clean water will be discharged into Doctors Creek.