Three design firms bid for new Riviera water treatment plant that will replace 1958 facility

Riviera Beach is expected Tuesday to select one of the three teams vying to design and build a new water treatment plant for the city that could cost as much as $150 million.

Federal, state and city money is expected to pay for the new plant.

The city is in the midst of a building boom that includes new municipal offices, new fire stations and new facilities for other government services. But city officials have said no project in recent history is more important than replacing the city's water treatment plant, which was completed in 1958.

“The city of Riviera Beach has been working diligently over the last year to deliver a state-of-the-art water treatment facility," City Manager Jonathan Evans said. "The existing facility is approaching the end of its useful life. We must move forward with a water treatment plant that can deliver the quality product we don't expect but demand.”

The city's Special Utility District Board will meet at the Marina Event Center at 6 p.m. Tuesday to determine which of the three teams that have submitted a bid will be awarded the project.

Who are the teams bidding for Riviera Beach's new water treatment plant?

Each of the teams have two engineering and construction firms that have extensive experience on vast projects, including water treatment facilities.

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The Haskell Company and CDM Smith have submitted a joint bid, along with PCL Construction and Carollo Engineers and Kiewit Water Facilities and Stantec Consulting Services.

Haskell is based in Jacksonville and has built a 1.1-million-square-foot craft beer brewery for Anheuser-Busch in California and the Baptist Medical Center in Jacksonville. The firm also upgraded the water treatment facility in Boca Raton to make that city's water more clear.

Haskell's partner in the Riviera Beach bid, CDM Smith, is based in Boston. CDM Smith assessed water treatment plant damage in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and built water supply and purification facilities in Houston, San Diego and Monterey, Calif.

The team of PCL Construction and Carollo Engineers have also submitted a bid to build Riviera Beach's new water treatment plant. PCL is based in Edmonton, Canada, and Denver. It has upgraded Bradenton's water treatment plant and build a JW Marriott in Orlando.

PCL's partner in the Riviera Beach bid, Carollo Engineers, is based in Walnut Creek, Calif. It undertook extensive pipeline replacement in Daytona Beach and upgraded and expanded a water reclamation plant in Gilbert, Ariz.

The team of Kiewit Water Facilities and Stantec Consulting Services are in the running for the Riviera Beach water treatment plant, too. Kiewit is based in Omaha, Neb., and built a water treatment plant in Parker, Colo., and a desalination plant in El Paso, Texas.

Its bidding partner, Stantec Consulting Services, is based in Edmonton. Stantec build a new science building for Yale University and is building a hydropower plant in Ethiopia as well as a mixed-used complex in Mexico City.

Why a new water treatment plant in Riviera Beach is necessary

Each of the teams has pledged to build the new water treatment plant in 36 months.

In a press release regarding the selection process, the city underscored the need for a new facility.

"The current aging facility uses an outdated lime softening method to treat the water, often leaving treated tap water with a harmless odor and discoloration," the press statement read. "The plant is also consistently challenged in producing desired water quality, mainly due to inoperable equipment that is approaching the end of its functional life and technology limitations."

One of the city's most important employers, PepsiCo. uses a water filtration process further treat the city's water. In May, The Palm Beach Post reported that PepsiCo. officials remain frustrated by the city's water treatment plant.

PepsiCo. has had to shut down operations to clean out the filtration system it uses. The firm was left with a type of lime sludge after it ran the city's treated water through its filtration system. Emails obtained by The Post indicate PepsiCo. reached out to City Councilman Tradrick McCoy and other city officials in an effort to resolve the problem, which officials stressed did not threaten the safety of drinking water for residents.

While emphasizing that the city's drinking water is safe, Evans nonetheless said a new treatment plant is needed desperately. The city has spent $15 million upgrading the plant, but it's not been enough.

""The current plant does not allow us to take it from where it is today to where it needs to be," Evans said in May.

A new water treatment plant is part of a facilities boom in Riviera Beach city officials have dubbed "Reimagine Riviera Beach."

"The city plans to reconstruct city facilities that are in desperate need of attention," the city said in a statement. "Many of the facilities were built in the 1970s and have not seen any significant improvements since. As a result, these facilities can no longer accommodate the growing needs of city operations. Therefore, the city has taken significant steps to address this matter."

Wayne Washington covers West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach and race relations. E-mail tips to wwashington@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Three teams bid to design, build Riviera Beach water treatment plant