Cape Coral waives bid procedures for algae cleanup efforts, approves Fort Myers pipeline

Cape Coral has waived normal bid procedures for goods and services related to algae cleanup.

City Council unanimously approved the resolution Monday to waive procurement procedures for "several algae mitigation strategies" the city has identified, including a partnership with Ecological Laboratories Inc., according to a city memo. District 2 council member John Carioscia was absent for the vote.

"The implementation of these strategies may require the procurement of goods and/or services, which under normal circumstances would require the formal competitive solicitation (bid) process which could take 90 days or longer," the memo reads. "Staff is requesting a Waiver of Procurement Procedures to meet the optimal timeframe to implement the strategies selected. To accomplish the task, it is in the City's best interest for the bid process to be waived."

The city will purchase goods and services authorized by the waiver process after a "good faith review of all available sources and negotiated of pricing, delivery, and terms." A maximum of $100,000 will be appropriated from the Water and Sewer Fund for the measure.

While the red tide and blue-green algae that has plagued Southwest Florida's waterways for months has subsided in some areas, the toxic algae is still present in Cape Coral canals.

The city recently began a pilot project with Cape Coral-based Ecological Laboratories to test the efficacy of the company's nonpatented biological formulas on cleaning up a canal in the city.

In other action, council also unanimously gave its approval for an agreement with the city of Fort Myers to construct a pipeline across the Caloosahatchee River and receive treated wastewater from the city for irrigation during the dry season.

More:Algae clean-up funded, but will it work?

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Cape Coral spokeswoman Connie Barron said Cape Coral will pay an estimated $15 million for the deal, most of which will go toward pipeline construction, with some funds for improvements at the Everest Water Reclamation Facility. The city will then pay 95 cents per 1,000 gallons of water it receives from Fort Myers, according to the agreement's term sheet.

City Manager John Szerlag said the city previously had to supplement its irrigation water supply with potable water, and that the agreement will yield an annual savings of $850,000 by not having to use the city's potable water.

Mayor Joe Coviello said the agreement was a win-win for both cities and a testament to the relationship Cape Coral has built with Fort Myers.

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