City officials have extended the bid deadline for the Duck River Dam by 10 days, following requests from contractors asking for more time to prepare their bid documents.

Officials hope the extension will allow contractors to spend more time on their bid proposals, which will hopefully lead to more competitive bids. Contractors will now have until May 2 to submit, extended from the original deadline of April 23.

Some contractors had requested even more time, though the utilities board opted to cap it at a 10-day extension because it should still remain tight enough not to affect the overall construction schedule.

The board hopes to receive bids on May 2, have engineer of record CH2M Hill review the proposals from May 2-7, then allow the utilities board to formally award the project on May 12. Officials hope to have a formal notice-to-proceed by May 23.

The tight timeline is needed to stay within the permit’s requirements to finish the dam by November 2016.

The board recently hired underwriting firms Piper Jaffray and Raymond James to manage bond funding for phase II. Minnesota-based Piper Jaffray will serve as lead underwriter, with the project being managed from regional southern offices. Raymond James is a Florida-based firm. The selections were made on the recommendation of the board’s financial advisor.

The total cost of the dam project is estimated at approximately $110 million, which is up approximately $40 million from initial estimates due to some unforeseen geological concerns at the site and higher-than-expected flood standards. Along with the increased price tag, local water rates will also be going up to cover the debt service for the project.

Those geological issues led engineers CH2M Hill to conduct a redesign of the project to fit the site as it stands, and the utilities board received a formal report from third-party engineers URS Corporation several months ago confirming the redesign plan is a sound option.

The dam project will create a 640-acre lake with a 32-million-gallon-per-day capacity in northeast Cullman County, which will work in conjunction with the area’s current sole major water source Lake Catoma. The design will be a hybrid, with roller-compacted concrete in the center and earthen wings.

The Duck River project has been in the works for more than a decade, after being permitted by the U.S. Army Corps. of Engineers than subsequently delayed by environmental challenges that have since been resolved.

Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 134.