Work appears imminent on the city’s longstanding effort to improve the operation of its wastewater treatment facility.

The Dowagiac City Council approved a resolution on Monday to award a tentative contract to L. D. Docsa Associates Inc., of Kalamazoo, to handle improvements to the filtration system inside its water plant, located near the Dowagiac Creek on M-62.

The firm was one of two of companies that submitted a bid for the project, coming in at the lowest of the two.

The selection of a contractor marks one of the final preparatory steps for the project before it officially gets underway. The city has been working on plans for potential improvements to its wastewater systems for the past several years, based off recommendations from a master plan it had completed several years ago.

“This one has certainly felt like it’s been a longtime in coming,” said City Manager Kevin Anderson. “It’s something we’ve been working on for the better part of four years now, when you get down to it.”

Construction costs are estimated to cost around $1.9 million dollars, with another $184,000 needed for onsite engineering work, Anderson said.

“At the end of the day, expenses are going to come in pretty close to what we originally said, a little under what the engineers had predicted,” Anderson said.

A portion of the funding for the project will be provided through grants, with the rest coming from a loan provided through the state’s revolving loan fund, which should be finalized in June, Anderson said.

Crews with the construction firm will be tasked with rebuilding the plant’s aeration tanks, which are used to help remove iron and hydrogen sulfide from water supplies, and with changing out the plant’s filters, the city manager said. These improvements will not only add to the overall capacity but will also increase the overall energy efficiently of the facility, leading to around $40,000 to $45,000 worth of annual savings in electricity, Anderson said.

“That goes a long ways in helping to pay the bill,” he said.

If the loan process with the state continues to remain on track, construction could being by late July, with an expected completion of 14 months, Anderson said.