Okaloosa County BOCC — December 15, 2015 — Supplemental Reclaimed Water to Niceville & Eglin - FDEP Grant — agenda request

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AGENDA REQUEST DATE: December 15, 2015 TO: Honorable Chairman and Members of the Board FROM: Jeff Littrell SUBJECT: Supplemental Reclaimed Water to Niceville & Eglin - FDEP Grant Agreement, RFQ & Review Committee DEPARTMENT: Water and Sewer BCC DISTRICT: 2, 3, 5 STATEMENT OF ISSUE: Okaloosa County Water & Sewer (OCWS) staff requests that the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) approve and authorize the Chairman to execute the Grant Agreement between the County and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). This $3,000,000 grant agreement (via a state appropriation) is for the complete design and partial construction funding of the Supplemental Reclaimed Water Project, which would send reclaimed water to the City of Niceville and Eglin AFB. The total project cost is estimated at $8,000,000. OCWS and Purchasing staff also request permission to move forward with a qualifications-based selection process for a contract with an engineering consultant for the same project to serve as the project engineer and perform other professional services. BACKGROUND: The southern portion of Okaloosa County has been deemed a “Water Use Caution Area” by the Northwest Florida Water Management District (NWFWMD). As a result of this designation, utilities operating within the area, and their customers, are urged to conserve water and reuse water supplies to maintain long-term sustainability of the water supply and the environment. Reclaimed water is a highly treated and disinfected product from a modern wastewater treatment plant that is re-used as irrigation. Okaloosa County Water & Sewer has this available resource from the Arbennie Pritchett Water Reclamation Facility (APWRF); the City of Niceville (City) has an existing reclaimed water utility; and Eglin Air Force Base (Eglin) has the potential to beneficially use reclaimed water in the medium-long term. The City’s customer demand for reclaimed water currently exceeds available supply on occasion and the problem is expected to worsen as the City continues to grow and develop. This project will allow for additional reclaimed water supply from the County to be transmitted to the City and Eglin, where needs exist in both the short and long terms. For OCWS, this project would increase the effluent disposal capacity of the APWRF. As the plant itself is currently in the process of being upgraded from a 10 million gallons per day (MGD) facility to a 15 MGD facility, the rapid infiltration basins (RIBs) would more than likely not need to be expanded, due to this Supplemental Reclaimed Water Project. As depicted on the attached map, the overall project generally consists of the following infrastructure (all sizes and distances are preliminary and subject to change, pending final design):  10.1 miles of 20 inch diameter reclaimed water main from the APWRF to the City service area;  1.1 miles of 12 inch diameter reclaimed water main from the approximate middle of the above-mentioned pipeline to the general vicinity of the Eglin’s Northwest Gate; and  Upgrades at the APWRF to produce public-access reclaimed water, including high level disinfection facilities, a pumping station, and other needed equipment. The project background, description, and benefits were all memorialized in the attached Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which was executed 10/1/2014 by the County, the City, and Eglin. The MOU established a partnership among these three entities for the purposes of completing this project, estimated at $8,000,000 (rough order of magnitude). Since the MOU was executed, OCWS staff has been seeking funding opportunities for the project. This project was one of five Water Projects submitted as a funding request to the state legislation in last year's funding cycle. Fortunately, the final state budget for FY2015-16 included the first $3,000,