Electric City accepted a contract with its engineering firm for design of a new plant to treat drinking water for arsenic.

City council members OK’d the contract with Gray & Osborne last Tuesday night for $176,119. Another $34,352 was approved by council for specialty services associated with G&O.

Mayor Jerry Sands advised the council that officials from Clearwater Construction, the successful bidder on the project, will be in town March 8, to review details of the job.

Clearwater submitted the lowest bid of 14 companies hoping for the project, at $1,310,985.

Electric City water users now pay $26 a month for services. This will go up $6 a month each July until it tops off at $44 a month. The rate increases will help pay off the city’s 20-year low-interest loan from the state’s Drinking Water Revolving Fund.

Electric City was shoved into the project by the Department of Health when the city’s arsenic readings exceeded new federal standards some years ago.

The city’s arsenic readings of 13-17 parts per billion exceed the new federal requirement of 10 parts per billion.

Efforts to get the city exempted from the standard failed several years ago and Electric City was notified to proceed with its plan to correct the problem.

Work on the treatment plant is expected to begin this spring and take 120 days.