CRESWELL – The City Council on Monday night approved a contract with Westech Engineering for engineering services, sewer collections, and infiltration improvements – a top priority for a city stuck in a building moratorium.
This initiative arises from a 2023 mutual agreement between the City of Creswell and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) that requires various wastewater utility enhancements before the moratorium on building can be lifted, aligning with the goal of providing safe, high-quality wastewater services to the community.
Since July 2023, Creswell has been subject to a development moratorium on the west side of Interstate 5. This moratorium prohibits new development, halting housing and business growth in the city. Development will remain on hold until specific criteria established by the DEQ are met, particularly regarding its wastewater infrastructure.
“We’re at the point where we need to have engineering done so we can complete the Priority One projects that are required by DEQ,” said Cliff Bellew, public works director.
The contract is for “Priority One” improvements to Creswell’s sewer collection system – the most urgent set of repairs identified after a comprehensive inspection of the wastewater lines, according to Bellew.
“This is the biggest portion of the collection system improvements,” the city needs to do to inch closer to lifting the moratorium, Bellew said. “What this does is this repairs all the broken areas, the cracked areas, separated areas where we get iodine inflow or infiltration, so you basically get storm water in your system, and then you treat storm water, which is not what you want to do in a wastewater plant.”
The scope covers engineering, surveying, design documents, final plan sets, and bidding services. Actual construction is not included in this contract, as this phase only prepares the city to solicit and manage repair construction later.
Key actions include completing a comprehensive inspection of the sanitary sewer system, which identified 16 pipe segments and 15 manholes for rehabilitation using methods such as Cured-In-Place-Pipe and Open Cut techniques, as outlined in a City memo.
The engineering services proposal includes topographical surveying, draft design, final plans, and bidding assistance, with a total cost not to exceed $175,000, funded through the Sewer Capital Improvement Reserve Fund.
The council approved the engineering services, directing City Manager Vincent Martorello, who was absent from Monday’s meeting due to illness, to sign the contract with Westech Engineering.
The overall repairs are expected to require multiple project phases over several years, with construction costs for Phase 1 estimated at around $2.5 million and not yet funded, with additional phases to follow.
