Whisper Bay subdivision residents will soon be able to sleep easier after the City of Gulf Breeze is set to approve utilizing South Santa Rosa Utilities System funds to add fire hydrants to the neighborhood along with plans to replace three aging hydrants within the neighborhood.
The city council is set to approve the purchase Tuesday night and will pay Utility Service Company $65,427.64 to replace 3 of the neighborhood’s aging fire hydrants and add 5 additional hydrants.
SSRUS has money set aside each year for hydrant and valve replacements and water main upgrades. For this fiscal year, SSRUS has $150,000 in that pot secured for projects of that magnitude.
City staff went to Midway Fire District Chief Jon Kanzigg to get feedback on where SSRUS could utilize the money, and Kanzigg pointed to Whisper Bay Subdivision, located less than 2 miles outside of the Gulf Breeze city limits.
Staff solicited quotes from contractors for 8 fire hydrants and Utility Service Company came in as the low bidder. The city also received a quote from Brown Construction for $66,496 and Warrington Utility and Excavation for $70,570. The city ultimately went with the lowest bidder, Utility Service Co.
Utility Service Co. estimated it would cost them $41,202.70 to tap the existing water main and install 5 new fire hydrants, and an additional $20,103.54 to remove and replace three of the neighborhood’s existing fire hydrants and install a new valve on the hydrants.
The project cost also includes landscaping around the hydrants.
