The Devine City Council voted in a meeting held last Tuesday, Nov. 20 to enter into a contract with KSA Engineering, Inc., for professional engineering services for the installation of a fuel farm at the Devine Municipal Airport.
KSA’s Grayson Cox presented the firm’s proposal for the installation of a 100 low-lead fuel system that is expected to have a 12,000 gallon capacity dual-wall steel tank. Plans call for the self-contained unit to be located in the area of the airport’s existing restrooms, and will include a reinforced concrete foundation and secondary containment structure.
Cox said the proposal was a “turn-key engineering scope for designing, administering bidding, and administering construction” for the fuel farm.
The proposal calls for design fees of $45,422; bid fees for $7,349; and construction administration and closeout fees of $23,370, for a total of $76,141.
Cox emphasized that the fees were only for engineering, not the actual construction and installation of the fuel farm.
“The City will need to go out to bid, and then the lowest responsible bidder will be awarded the construction contract,” Cox said. “And the scope that you have is basically KSA will assist throughout all those steps, including going out to bid and administering construction for the work.”
In addition to construction work, the City will also be responsible for data for the fuel farm’s card reader, as well as power to the site.
The fuel farm will be paid for in part with the help of annual Routine Airport Maintenance Program (RAMP) grants from TxDot.
“Your RAMP grant every year is $100,000,” Cox said. “It’s fifty-fifty, so the City spends $50,000 and TxDot gives you $50,000. It’s actually reimbursement, so the City’s going to spend $100,000 and get $50,000 back.”
Cox said that the project could be timed to allow the City to utilize RAMP grants for both fiscal year 2018-2019 and fiscal year 2019-2020.
“I think what we’ll probably do because timing is such a big deal is stipulate in the contract that submittal review, pre-construction meeting, and mobilization has to be complete and invoiced before this date, and no other invoices will be approved until after that date,” Cox said. “And that way we’re kind of contractually confining the money so that we’re maximizing what we can this year and then push everything off into the next year.”
The fuel farm could be up and running as soon as February 2020.
A motion by District 3 Councilman David Espinosa and District 5 Councilman Cory Thompson to allow Interim City Administrator Dora Rodriguez to enter into a contract with KSA on the City’s behalf passed 4-0, with affirmative votes by District 2 Councilman Steve Lopez and District 4 Councilwoman Jennifer Schott.
District 1 Councilman David Valdez was absent.
By Marly Davis
Staff Writer