Design contracts awarded for Biloxi repairs

05/22/2009

HNTB Corp. has given nine design firms the notice to proceed on 10 contracts totaling $3.5 million to design a $355 million Hurricane Katrina-related infrastructure repair program for the City of Biloxi, financed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The contracts, which were awarded from mid-April to mid-May, represent roughly one-fourth of total design contracts to be awarded.

“We anticipate the whole program being under design by the end of the summer and construction to begin this fall,” says Brent Duet, HNTB program manager.

HNTB holds a $20.2 million contract to provide program management services to the City of Biloxi. The contract includes everything from program start-up, design engineering, consultant contracting, plan reviews, bid phase services, construction phase services, public information and outreach and construction inspection, Duet says. The overall project includes improvements throughout the City of Biloxi, but with most of the work concentrated on the southeastern peninsula. 

“We are replacing water lines, sanitary/sewer lines, storm drainage and roadways that were damaged by flooding and high winds from Katrina,” Duet says. “We are also rehabilitating and replacing sewer lift stations.”

The project includes construction/installation of an estimated 485,000 linear ft of water lines, 426,000 linear ft of sanitary/sewer lines, 320,000 linear ft of storm drainage, 48 lift stations and 100 mi of street paving.

Community outreach programs won’t begin until later in the year when HNTB has some designs to show the public, says Bryan Jones, senior public involvement representative for HNTB.

Six of the nine firms under contract with HNTB are based in Mississippi.

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