Salinas Finance Committee members on Nov. 4 received an update on the city's sanitary sewer capital program, including plans to seek a design'build team for a new Lake Street pump station and a preliminary construction cost estimate of $20 million to $25 million.

Adriana Robles, assistant public works director and city engineer, said the city's sanitary sewer system serves more than 12,000 acres, includes more than 280 gravity mains and 11 lift stations, and that the 2023 Sanitary Sewer Master Plan update informed the list of capital projects now being sequenced into the capital improvement program. "We're anticipating issuing that solicitation, by the end of the month," Robles said of the Lake Street design'build procurement.

The nut of the plan is to pair projects and timing with the sewer rate study and recent fee changes. Robles and other staff described a procurement schedule that would produce a short list by February, an award by April and a contract start in May, followed by an anticipated two-year construction period that could put a new lift station online around May 2028, an optimistic target staff noted.

The presentation covered two primary project paths. One is the Lake Street lift station (the highest priority). The other consists of pipeline improvements tied to development plans in the central area and projects previously identified such as the Cesar Chavez pipeline and the Hill Circle subdivision. During the last budget cycle and following council direction, staff shifted additional focus to Abbot Street sewer work so the sewer reconstruction can be packaged with pavement improvements; Robles said on-call consultants are preparing designs targeted for completion in February'March, with a planned bid in May and construction aimed for November (year not specified).

Committee members pressed staff on construction sequencing and funding. When asked whether the system would be shut down during construction, Robles said a bypass is required: "You have to design a bypass. Okay. So that's how you do sewers because a sewer can never be shipped out." She added the city is considering purchasing property to keep an existing pump station operational while a new facility is built.

On funding, staff and the city manager said the rate increases that took effect Oct. 1 were not sufficient to pay for the largest projects on a pay-as-you-go basis and that the city expects to use debt. "So that's how it's gonna be covered. It's gonna be debt service," the city manager said, describing recent discussions with the financial adviser and plans to time borrowing to align with bid awards. Robles presented a rate-model projection that shows projected revenue against operating expenses and planned capital spending and highlighted that bonding will be required during the Lake Street construction window.

Robles provided early construction estimates for the Lake Street lift station of $20 million to $25 million. Staff emphasized those are preliminary figures and that the procurement approach (design'build) is intended to compress schedule, allow earlier contractor input and reduce change orders.

The committee did not take formal action on a project authorization at the meeting; this item was presented as an informational update. The meeting did include a consent vote to approve the Oct. 14, 2025 minutes, which passed unanimously.

Staff asked the committee for feedback on the presentation format and suggested future meetings will include financial planning tied to project award timing and debt issuance. The committee scheduled a follow-up meeting for Dec. 2.