Commission awards two contracts for improvements to county facilities

The Sarasota County Commission Tuesday, June 18, awarded contracts totaling nearly $1.7 million for construction of the Central County Water Reclamation Facility deep injection well pump and piping system, and the Terrace Building generator project.

The $1.1 million contract awarded to Close Construction LLC of Okeechobee is for phase 3 of the deep injection well pump and piping system project. One of the county's regional wastewater treatment facilities, the Central County Water Reclamation Facility at 7905 McIntosh Road, Sarasota, was identified as the best location for a deep injection well that can handle effluent when the demand for irrigation is low and the water storage ponds for reclaimed water are nearing full capacity.

Phase 3, the final phase of the project, includes the purchase and installation of permanent supply pumps, piping, a recycle pump and piping system to recycle existing reuse water from the on-site storage pond through effluent filters and chlorine contact chambers before injection into the deep well. Phase one, which included the drilling of the deep injection well to provide 18.6 million gallons per day of effluent disposal capacity, was completed in December 2009. Phase two -- for the drilling of two monitoring wells, construction of the well pad, an injection test and pressured treatment to enhance operational capacity -- was finished in June 2011. The total price for all three phases is about $4 million. Construction of phase three is expected to take about nine months.

The contract for the generator project at the Terrace Building, 101 S. Washington Ave., in downtown Sarasota, was awarded to Halfacre Construction Company of Sarasota. Built in 1926, the Terrace Building was purchased by the county in 1972, once served as a county Administration Center and now houses the offices of the Tax Collector, the Supervisor of Elections, the Property Appraiser and Teen Court.

The Terrace Building improvements include relocation and upgrade of the existing transformer and upgrades to the transfer switch system, as well as replacement of the main switchboard. With the completion of the upgrades, the generator will be able to sustain the full electrical load of the building. The project is expected to be completed in approximately five months.

Funding for the Central Water Reclamation Facility deep injection well pump and piping system is available from utility revenue bonds, and for the Terrace Building generator project through the Capital Improvements fund.

For more information, contact the Sarasota County Call Center at 941-861-5000 (TTY 7-1-1 or 1-800-955-8771).