The first Public Improvement Project in many years will be
starting soon after road restrictions are lifted. The project includes the installation of
sanitary sewer and paving of Creek Circle and portions of Whitebirch Drive. The project will serve a total of 33
residential lots. 18 of these lots are
part of Whitebirch Village and the remaining 15 lots are in Creek Circle.
The project was ordered at the April 7th meeting
and an award was made to Pratts Affordable Excavating, a construction firm from
Merrifield, MN. The total project cost
is $374,217.54. Of this
amount the city, using sewer funds, will be picking up $104,166.50 of the costs making the amounts to be assessed $270,051.04. Each lot will be assessed
$8,183.36. This amount is to be spread
over a 20 year period at 4.25%.
The project should take about 2 months to complete. Prior to construction the roadway will be
stripped of class 5 gravel and used elsewhere.
Installation of the sewer mains will occur with both trenching and directional
boring. The boring will occur in the
areas of the golf course. It will both
parallel the fairway and also cross it to connect to the lift station north of
Antlers and Whitebirch Estates, along County Road 11. Some of the trenching will be rather deep,
approaching 20 feet. Paving will occur after
all sewer lines and services have been installed. It will consist of a 20 foot wide roadway
with 3 foot wide class 1 aggregate shoulders. Drainage will consist of a minimum of 2 foot
ditches on each side. Driveways and
culvert control structures along Creek Circle to minimize erosion and maximize soil
absorption will also be constructed. Restoration
of the area with seeding will be accomplished and may occur after the 2 month
construction period.
Prior to the start of the project the contractor needs to
provide the city with a certificate of insurance, a payment bond and a performance
bond. The payment bond is required to
assure that his subcontractors get paid. The performance bond guarantees the
project gets completed to city specifications in the case the contractor doesn’t
perform, for any reason. These are required
by state law. Also prior to the start
will be a preconstruction meeting. The
meeting agenda will be to focus on timelines, who will do what, other
utility concerns such as power or phone, and address coordination.
We hope to have a successful project with things going
well. Sometimes unanticipated issues
arise that need to be addressed. Staying
on top of things helps to minimize these types of issues. As the
project commences weekly construction meetings will be held to address any concerns
or issues that develop. Notes from these
weekly meetings will be posted to the website to allow people to stay current
with construction activities. It will be
good to see some construction activity and progress in the city.
