Specification 26-10 (C51700) Butte Slough Outfall Gates Repairs, Sacramento River

California Department of Water Resources is soliciting sealed bids under Specification 26-10 (Contract C51700) for the Butte Slough Outfall Gates Repairs on the Sacramento River, with a mandatory inspection trip on November 4, 2026 and bids due December 2, 2026. Bidders must be prequalified by the Department, hold an active California "A" contractor's license, and submit a Department-approved special prequalification before bidding.

Eligibility carries several preference and compliance terms. The Department established a 25 percent Small Business Enterprise participation goal. It encourages Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise participation, with a 3 percent DVBE incentive for bids meeting or exceeding 3 percent DVBE participation. A California company reciprocal preference applies. Prevailing wage applies, and all contractors and subcontractors must be registered with the Department of Industrial Relations at bid and throughout performance. The special prequalification requires three completed cofferdam projects within 10 years, each with steel sheet-pile installation, at least 14 feet of hydrostatic pressure, at least one month of constant dewatering in an artesian aquifer, and dewatering rates of at least 400 gallons per minute. Experience may be held by a proposed subcontractor. Critical staff must include a California-licensed professional engineer with cofferdam design experience, a California professional engineer or certified hydrogeologist with dewatering design experience, and a supervising foreperson, each with three comparable projects. A separate safety prequalification questionnaire is due to the Department no later than five days before bid opening. Contractors with a workers' compensation experience modification rate above 1.25 must provide a full-time safety professional at their expense.

Scope covers replacing the inlet catwalk, repairing or replacing inlet slide gates, installing piles, and miscellaneous metal work at the Butte Slough outlet structure. The Department furnishes seven slide gates with electrical actuators. In-water work includes dewatering and cofferdam installation, with additional electrical, selective demolition, earthwork, concrete rock slope protection, road repair, a control equipment shed, and cast-in-place concrete. The bid schedule contains 71 line items priced on unit and lump-sum bases. Permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Regional Water Quality Control Board apply. The site lies about 6 miles southeast of Colusa, with work across Colusa and Sutter counties.

The estimated cost ranges from $4.7 million to $6.6 million. Bid security of at least 10 percent is required. Sealed bids are received at California Natural Resources Agency Headquarters, 715 P Street, Sacramento, between 12:00 P.M. and 2:00 P.M. on December 2, 2026, with a public opening held in person and by webinar. Award goes to the lowest responsible bidder within 30 days after bid opening. Proposed alternatives to designated materials are due by email 14 days before bid opening, and the Department is the sole judge of acceptability. Drawing requests and questions go to doe_specs@water.ca.gov before bid opening. The inspection trip begins at 10:00 A.M. at the site and takes approximately two hours. Attendees provide their own hard hats, safety vests, and work boots, and must confirm attendance with the Department at least two days in advance.