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Alpine water work launched
cindyperry@alpineavalanche.com City officials and representatives of Key Enterprises Inc. got their hands on 12 shiny gold shovels Tuesday to officially dedicate the start of a pipeline project that will improve water delivery to many Alpine residents. The $3.78 million project is set to begin in a week or two, said James Hindman, project manager with Key Enterprises of Odessa, and is expected to take approximately 15 months. The work likely will be done in sections or neighborhood by neighborhood. Stacks of 64,000 feet of bright turquoise 6-inch to 12-inch pipe now sit at one corner of 5th and Murphy streets, waiting to be placed in the ground. "This project is a long time coming," said Mayor Mickey Clouse, one of the city officials wielding a shovel at Tuesday's short ceremony. Engineers and the city expect the project to take care of water delivery problems, particularly water pressure, for the next 30 years. Many residents in south and southeast Alpine, in particular, have waited years for some action. The process finally culminated in the city awarding the contract this past fall. But that wasn't without controversy. One local contractor disputed the city's designation of Key Enterprises as the lowest "responsible" bidder, saying his bid was lower and that since he was in Alpine, he would provide more local jobs. But at a City Council meeting in October, city officials stuck by their initial bid award, saying Key Enterprises had promised to solicit workers locally and, if they withdrew the bid from Key, they could face problems with the Texas Water Commission and its no-interest loan that will finance the project. Among those at Tuesday's dedication ceremony were Hindman; Ted Stewart, owner of Key Enterprises; Tom Brown of Naismith Engineering, which is designing, planning and coordinating the project for the city; City Manager Chuy Garcia; and City Council members Gerald Raun, Manuel Payne, Diana Asgeirsson and Avinash Rangra; City Attorney Rod Ponton; and City Secretary Molly Taylor. mikeperry@alpineavalanche.com It's stock show time for Brewster County Avalanche staff mikeperry@alpineavalanche.com cindyperry@alpineavalanche.com Filing complete for March primary ballot Avalanche staff |
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