By Bill Short
The Millington Board of Mayor and Aldermen has awarded bids for sewer outfalls on Raleigh-Millington Road, the Thornhill Estates Subdivision and West Royster Creek.
Board members took the actions by adopting separate resolutions during their November 2020 regular monthly meeting.
The resolutions state that, after advertising for bids, the city received five for the Raleigh-Millington and Thornhill Estates projects and two for the West Royster Creek project.
The Fisher Arnold engineering firm in Memphis reviewed all the bids, as well as the qualifications of each of the contractors, and recommended the following as the lowest and best:
(1) A total bid of $2,573,121 by ENSCOR LLC, including a $991,600 “additive alternate;”
(2) A total bid of $2,600,000 by Memphis Road Boring Co. Inc., including a $975,000 additive alternate.
During discussion shortly before the votes, City Finance Director John Trusty said ENSCOR’s base bid is to do the “revised sewer plan” down Raleigh-Millington Road.
Because that sewer is “basically full,” he said the outfall will increase its capacity. He noted that it will also open a “significant number of acres” along the road for future development.
The company’s additive alternate is for the Thornhill Estates outfall, which will “convert forced mains to gravity flow” for all phases of the subdivision.
It will also open up a number of acres for development that are bounded by Highway 51, state Route 385, the Canadian National Railroad and Big Creek Church Road.
Trusty noted that it will allow the city to connect the Thornhill sewer lines along Highway 51 to tie in across from Route 385.
On a motion offered by Alderman Al Bell and seconded by Alderman Thomas McGhee, the board voted to award the ENSCOR bid.
The motion was passed by six affirmative votes, with Alderman Mike Caruthers dissenting.
He expressed opposition to awarding the company “any other contracts” until it finishes making the sidewalks on Navy Road handicapped-accessible to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Memphis Road Boring’s base bid is for the West Royster Creek outfall, which will bore a new gravity flow sewer line southward from Lions Park under Hickory Meadows Road to the entrance of USA Stadium.
It will also open a “significant number of acres” for current development along Shelby Road and provide capacity for future development.
Trusty said the company’s additive alternate will allow this new line to be tied to existing houses served by a sewer line that is being threatened by Royster Creek erosion.
“So, we’re better off dealing with it before it does that and leaks sewage into the creek,” he concluded.
In response to a question by Caruthers, Trusty said that, “at this point,” the city is funding all of the connections. But he noted that this cost will “ultimately be partially recovered” through the fees that the developer pays to connect.
On a motion offered by Alderman Jon Crisp and seconded by McGhee, the board voted unanimously to award the Memphis Road Boring bid.
