Village to seek dam bids as frustration grows

A request for bids to repair the Bridge Street Dam in Grafton will likely go out in the next two weeks, Public Works Director Julie Esch told the Board of Public Works Monday.
“We’re working through the details of the bids,” Esch said, adding she hopes to present them to the board in September for approval.

She said she’s also working with the Department of Natural Resources on a permit needed for the work, something that requires the village to have a plan to fix the structure.

“I can’t predict the DNR permit process,” she said, nor can she predict how long it will take.

Esch told the board each bidder will be able to diagnose the issues with the dam on their own, but board member Les Blum disagreed, saying the village should diagnose the problem on its own.

“We should get someone in there and give the information to bidders,” Blum said, adding he believes that would provide the village with better bid results.

“I think we’re making a big mistake in the process. We’re going to have bids with prices this far apart,” he said, gesturing with his hands spread out. “What do we do then?”

Blum noted that in the past several months, numerous members of the community have expressed a willingness to investigate the issues on their own.

Board member Jeremy Napiwocki agreed, saying he has no problem with citizens doing the diagnostic work if they sign a waiver of liability that would protect the village.

But Esch said she’s concerned about the potential liability the village could incur, noting the process of examining the hydraulic cylinder that failed is more complicated than it seems.

“It’s not as simple as just looking at the cylinder,” Esch said.

Esch noted that when the hydraulic cylinder on the dam’s gate failed, she contacted dam consultant J.F. Brennan Co. of La Crosse. Brennan representatives told officials the problem is “definitely a problem with the seal,” she said, and offered two alternatives. If the seal just needs to be repacked, it would cost the village an estimated $154,000, and if the problem involves major components and the cylinder needs to be replaced, it would cost $180,000.

But the fact that the process of seeking bids and permits could take more than a month didn’t sit well with those attending the meeting, who said they want work to begin immediately.

Marie McFaul, who noted that last week the Village Board voted to expedite the repair process, told the board it should  “execute that mandate without excuses and without administrative delays.”

“The directive is clear,” she said. “Please take charge and deliver what’s been charged. The citizens of Grafton have fought to get this project moving.”

Former Village Trustee Lisa Harbeck asked the board to immediately raise the gate and immediately authorize an assessment by a local hydraulic expert.

“This is most likely a simple repair and this has gone on too long,” she said.

Her husband Bill Harbeck said the village doesn’t know exactly what went wrong and needs to rectify that before seeking bids.

“It seems to me we should get a handle on what this issue is,” he said. “Take people up on their offer to do a quick analysis so you put together the right kind of bids.”

The dam has been the center of discussion throughout the village since a hydraulic cylinder on the dam failed during the night of May 1, substantially draining the millpond.

A village crew tried unsuccessfully to move the gate from its lowest setting, and a subsequent study by J.F. Brennan Co. revealed the cause of the failure was a failed hydraulic cylinder.

The village staff recommended buying a new cylinder to repair the dam, but after questions about the cost of the fix and whether it would be best to remove or repair the structure were raised, the Village Board in June postponed a decision for 60 days while officials research the best long-term decision.

After a public hearing last week attended by hundreds of people, many of whom called for the dam to be repaired rather than removed, the Village Board agreed to fix the structure and seek expedited bids for the work.

But Esch noted that the village still needs to follow processes as it seeks bids for the work, even if that slows the timetable.