IRON MOUNTAIN — A local firm will be contracted at a cost not to exceed $638,865 to provide engineering services for a $5 million project set to begin next year to replace about 400 lead service lines in Iron Mountain.

A proposal from Coleman Engineering was approved Monday by the city council. Coleman will design and bid the project, and provide construction inspection while lines are being installed.

City Manager Jordan Stanchina said there’s a chance Coleman’s fee will go down if the contractor has more than one crew operating. With one crew, it’s estimated the project will have 4.2 lines replaced per week for a total of 95 weeks.

“If two crews were operating, the amount of lines replaced per week would double and the construction engineering hours would be greatly reduced,” Stanchina explained.

The project will be funded through the Michigan Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. The city has been awarded a $2.5 million loan at 2% interest, plus $1.72 million in principal forgiveness and a lead and infrastructure grant of $780,000.

The DWSRF funding — furthered by the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021 — is the latest in a series of loans and grants secured by the city in the past several years. It puts Iron Mountain on track to have all lead service lines in its water system replaced by 2028 — nine years ahead of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency deadline.

In most cases, the service lines replaced are galvanized pipes connected to water mains through a “gooseneck” that contains lead, Stanchina said.

The new work is expected to be bid in the spring, with construction starting in the fall and continuing through 2028.

A separate project begun in fall 2024 by Ultra Construction Services of Marquette is expected to replace about 375 lead service lines. The council Monday approved a payment of $263,785 to Ultra, bringing total payments to $2.07 million out of a $3.71 million contract.

That project is funded by a DWSRF grant of $2.24 million and a $2.33 million loan at 2% interest.

In another matter, the council adopted a resolution authorizing publication of a notice of intent to issue revenue bonds for part of an $18.6 million water and sewer project launched this fall. The notice of intent concerns the city’s plan to borrow up to $7.63 million through the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund the sewer portion.

The water portion is financed by a 40-year DWSRF loan of $10.64 million at 2% interest, plus a $2.666 million grant.

The project includes 426 lead water service replacements; 11,900 feet of gravity sanitary sewer and 13,900 feet of water main; and associated road restoration totaling about 2.5 miles.

In other action, the council:

— Heard City Attorney Gerry Pirkola report on efforts to be more aggressive in addressing blight violations by pursuing court orders when multiple citations fail to get results.

— Decided to reject a bid received from JX Truck Center of Marquette for a new 4×4 truck that would replace one of the city’s two largest plow trucks. It was the only qualifying bid and it exceeded the $200,000 budgeted. A new bid proposal will be advertised with a Dec. 15 deadline. Council member David Farragh noted it’s unlikely a truck will be acquired before spring.

— Received bids for a new 3/4-ton van for public works from Spirit Ford of Dundee and Dorsch Ford of Green Bay, Wis., and referred them to staff.

— Scheduled a public hearing for 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 15, on a request from Eden Property Collection to vacate a portion of an alley between East Hughitt Street and East Ludington Street, east of Merritt Avenue. There are no city utilities within the right-of-way. Eden owns the surrounding property, which is part of its redevelopment project at the former Appliance and Furniture Mart.

— Noted City Hall and Public Works will be closed on Thanksgiving, Nov. 27, as well as Friday, Nov. 28.

Jim Anderson can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 85226, or janderson@ironmountaindailynews.com.