Southwest side water main project begins Aug. 6
The city has contracted with Capcon for the replacement of water mains along several blocks on the southwest side of Great Falls.
The water main replacement areas include 5th Avenue Southwest from 20th Street Southwest to 24th Street Southwest; 14th Street Southwest from 8th Avenue Southwest to 7th Avenue Southwest; and 13th Street Southwest from 10th Avenue Southwest to 8th Avenue Southwest.
Those areas will be closed to through traffic beginning Aug. 6.
Capcon will provide barricades and detour signs in the area for traffic routing.
Local access for residents will be maintained throughout the project.
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Work is scheduled to begin on 5th Avenue Southwest and move eastward, according to the city. Capcon will open streets to through traffic as the work progresses.
The project is scheduled from completion next spring or summer.
For questions, contact Bryan Guckeen at 406-899-1039 or Mike Richardson 406-799-7845 with Capcon or Matt Proud with city engineering at 406-771-1258.
City Commissioners unanimously approved a $2.5 million contract for the project in June.
The project will replace eight blocks of aging water mains on the southwest side totalling about 3,500 lineal feet.
Those water mains are undersized and failing with increasing frequency, with water main breaks causing damage to property and roadways while disrupting water service in the area.
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The water mains to be replaced in this phase are along 5th Avenue Southwest including a “severely undersized” 4-inch cast iron main installed in 1964, along with mains along 13th and 14th Streets Southwest that were installed in 1946 and 1992, respectively.
The breaks are primarily due to corrosive soils, age and type of pipe material used, according to public works staff.
The project will replace about 1,500 lineal feet of undersized 4-inc cast iron water mains and 2,000 lineal feet of 6-inch and 8-inch cast iron, ductile iron and asbestos cement water mains, according to staff.
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The older water mains will be replaced with 8-inch PVC mains.
The project also includes replacing seven fire hydrants, 71 water service connections, 2,800-square-yards of gravel and 3,750-square-yards of asphalt pavement, according to city staff.
During their May 7 meeting, commissioners rejected a $3,234,878.80 bid from Geranios Enterprises for the project.
Staff had recommended the rejection and had already started readvertising for the project on May 5.
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The city received three bids in the second round of bidding for the project, ranging from Capcon’s $2.5 million to $3.159 million.
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City staff wrote in their agenda report that Capcon was the lowest responsive bid, had completed all required documents and is a local contractor that has previously completed project within the city.
The Capcon bid from the second round is $734,061.30 lower than the only bid received in the first round, according to staff.
City staff had said in May that rejecting the Geranios bid would likely delay the project to August 2025, but if commissioners award the new contract, staff estimates the project will start Aug. 5 and be completed late next summer.
During construction, residents and businesses will be placed on temporary water and traffic will be detoured around project locations.
City engineering staff designed the project and will perform construction inspection and contract administration duties, according to staff.
The project was identified in the public works capital improvement plan and is being funded through the city’s water utility enterprise fund.
