City of Tampa infrastructure staff told the council the PIPES capital program remains active but has encountered cost increases since the program’s original estimates, driven by post‑pandemic construction and material costs.

Brad Baer, deputy administrator of infrastructure, and Eric Weiss, director of the wastewater department, summarized the program’s scope. Weiss said the wastewater master plan originally identified roughly $561 million for the Howard Curran advanced wastewater treatment plant, and the pipes‑in‑the‑ground component estimated about $648 million over 20 years. He said the utility manages 1,500 miles of wastewater pipes across the city and that about 60% of that pipe was installed before 1970, with 20% installed before 1950.

Weiss reported the program has completed 119 projects to date with total commitments exceeding $730 million and estimated that, due to inflation and supply‑chain impacts after project baselines were set, an additional unfunded delta of about $181 million may exist pending updated scope and cost reviews by consultants.

The presentation highlighted several priority projects:

- Bayshore Wastewater Pumping Station: replacement and flood‑protected building; staff said the station was under construction and expected to be online soon.

- Howard Curran Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades: a roughly $40 million project to replace obsolete cryogenic oxygen technology and a separate project to replace aging aerobic digesters (two 2.5 million‑gallon tanks), both intended to increase reliability and capacity.

- Filter building improvements at the water treatment plant: a $115 million project adding 20 million gallons per day (MGD) of filter capacity and biologically active filters; design and construction schedules extend into the mid‑2020s with completion dates in the program timeline (presenters cited 2027 as a target for some work).

Rory Jones from the water department said the program’s original overall budget was about $2.9 billion; to date the city has awarded more than $630 million in contracts. He and Weiss said construction costs have risen substantially compared with pre‑pandemic estimates and that some projects have been deferred to account for cost increases. Staff emphasized the program’s operational benefits — main breaks and water loss have declined where replacements have been completed — while cautioning the public that rising construction costs complicate the remaining delivery schedule.

Council questions focused on tracking overall budget performance (council asked for a consolidated view of original vs. current estimates), insurance and valuation for the treatment plant (a council member estimated insured replacement value “over $1,000,000,000”), and follow‑up communication to neighborhoods affected by recent plant upsets. Staff said they would return with more detailed cost‑tracking and with communications to affected neighborhoods about steps taken to reduce future upsets.

Provenance (selected evidence from the meeting transcript)

- Topic intro: transcript block starting at 1263.06, evidence excerpt: "Good afternoon, counsel. Brad Baer, deputy administrator of infrastructure. Proud to tell you that, September 5, we just passed our 6 year anniversary for Pikes..."

- Topic finish: transcript block starting at 2074.5552, evidence excerpt: "And with that, I'll open up to any questions."