The Austin City Council approved a contract with Short Elliot Hendrickson (SEH), Inc. for flood mitigation services at the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) during its regular meeting Tuesday evening.

According to City Engineer Steven Lang, SEH developed a proposal based on the WWTP Flood Mitigation Study for design and bidding service for the project. The project design will work to develop concepts identified in the study for protection of the WWTP with levees and walls built to FEMA certification.

SEH will develop the following designs:

• Civil design – general layout of project features, flood barrier alignment, utility modifications, quantities and plan development.
• Hydraulic and interior design – water surface modeling designed for a “no rise” project and an interior drainage design to prevent interior flooding during rain events.

SEH will also conduct a geotechnical analysis, which involves soil-boring evaluation to determine structural load capacity of soil and a bedrock depth evaluation, and a structural analysis, including structural design of concrete floodwall, storm and sanitary structures and utility crossings.

The proposal is in the amount of $526,670. Fifty percent of the project will be funded with a DNR grant; the rest will be funded though the Local Option Sales Tax.

The council also voted to approve the assessment rates for the 2020 street reconstruction projects. Assessment rates, which are applied to adjacent residential and commercial/industrial properties, are as follows:

• 4” thick sidewalk (Residential and C/I) – $6 per square foot
• 6” thick sidewalk (Residential and C/I) – $8.50 per square foot
• Concrete curb (Residential and C/I) – $17.33 per lineal foot
• Urban street reconstruction (Residential) – $49.09 per lineal foot
• Urban street reconstruction (C/I) – $70.09 per lineal foot
• Rural street reconstruction (Residential) – $37.28 per lineal foot
• Rural street reconstruction (C/I) – $53.55 per lineal foot
• Mill and overlay (Residential) – $17.85 per lineal foot
• Mill and overlay (C/I) – $28.09 per lineal foot

Street projects slated for 2020 are:

• 10th Street Northeast/Southeast (Oakland Place Southeast to Second Avenue Northeast) and Fourth Street Southwest (Oakland Avenue West to First Avenue Southwest);
• Fifth Street Southwest (First Avenue Southwest to Fifth Avenue Southwest), Sixth Avenue Southwest (Fourth Street Southwest to Sixth Street Southwest) and Seventh Street Southwest (Fourth Avenue Southwest to Fifth Avenue Southwest);
• Fifth Avenue Northeast (Oakland Place Northeast to 19th Street Northeast); and
• Seventh Street Northwest (Eighth Avenue Northwest to 13th Avenue Northwest) and Ninth Avenue Northwest (Fourth Street Northwest to Eighth Street Northwest).

The council approved a revision to the lease agreement between the city and the YMCA at the Austin Community Recreation Center that will allow the Youth Activity Center be for students grades second through 12th as opposed to fifth through 12th.