University No. 4 Tank Replacement Project

The University No. 4 Tank Replacement Project is a single prime contract procurement by the City of Santa Cruz Water Department in collaboration with the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC), covering Santa Cruz County and San Francisco City jurisdictions. The project involves comprehensive water infrastructure replacement, specifically decommissioning and removing an existing 400,000-gallon steel potable water storage tank and constructing a new steel tank on the existing foundation. Key deliverables include installing a 40,000-gallon maintenance tank, upgrading pump controls, fire-hardening the U6 pump station roof, creating two road pullouts, replacing fencing, and improving drainage infrastructure. Bidders must be registered with the California Department of Industrial Relations and possess a valid California Contractor's General Engineering License. A mandatory pre-bid conference is scheduled for April 17, 2024, at the project site, with sealed bids due by May 1, 2024, at 3:00 PM. The project requires precise engineering specifications, including seismic considerations, fire safety standards, and integration with existing water supply systems for UCSC and local Westside customers.

The contract includes specific requirements for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) good faith efforts and mandates local hiring preferences, with contractors required to hire qualified individuals who are residents of Santa Cruz County. The project will be funded through the Community Grants Program and the Water Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act (WIFIA), both managed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Bidders must comply with federal requirements, including Davis-Bacon wage rates and American Iron and Steel provisions. The contract includes allowances of $10,000 for shop coating inspections and $149,350 for SCADA integration. The engineer's estimate anticipates a total bid price of $4.4 million, with a contract completion time of 482 working days. Geotechnical investigations have already been conducted, identifying site-specific challenges such as quartz diorite bedrock, potential slope creep, and seismic activity, which will be critical considerations for potential contractors. The project aims to maintain water supply reliability and infrastructure resilience for the UCSC campus and surrounding community.