Storm Lake approves $118,140 change order for Scout Park sewer project
A $118,140 change order pushed Storm Lake’s stalled Scout Park sewer work past a months-long snag, even as residents still face drive lane shifts on Vista and Lighthouse.
Storm Lake’s sewer overhaul at Scout Park picked up another $118,140 after the City Council approved a change order for the lift-station project, a cost bump tied to a field conflict that had stalled work for months. Public Works Director Ron Covert said the problem involved an existing eight-inch sanitary sewer line that interfered with an 18-inch sewer force main being installed with the new lift station, and Councilman Don Piercy pressed city staff on why the conflict had not been identified earlier.
The project is not just about buried pipe. Bolton & Menk’s project materials say the city is replacing the Scout Park sewer lift station and the Ice House sewer lift station on the southwest portion of Vista Drive to improve sanitary sewer capacity and prevent loss of service during flood hazards. Storm Lake’s project updates also warn that lane shifts and closures are planned for portions of Lighthouse Drive and Vista Drive while the work continues, putting the project squarely in the path of daily neighborhood traffic.
The latest change order adds 8 percent to the stalled project and comes after a stretch of uncertainty for a job that is supposed to protect a core public service. Construction notices from spring 2025 said work on the two lift stations was expected to begin around April 23, 2025, and continue through fall 2026. March 20, 2026, updates showed the Scout Park Lift Station building progressing with installation of the face block, generator and HVAC equipment, with sanitary sewer piping already installed below grade.
The lift-station work is part of a larger infrastructure push that the council tied to resilience and sustainability. In September 2024, Storm Lake finalized $6.4 million in contracts with King Construction of Wall Lake for a new aquifer well and the Scout Park and Ice House lift stations, with the lift-station portion priced at $4,029,188. City officials said the upgrades were needed after the lift stations had gone more than 15 years without improvement, and the new approval keeps the project moving even as underground conditions continue to drive the price higher.
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