Marble Falls councilor gets $540K wastewater plant contract
A Marble Falls city councilor was awarded an estimated $540,000 contract to oversee the construction of the city’s new $80 million wastewater treatment plant. The City Council voted 3-1 on Tuesday, Dec. 3, to give the professional services bid to its fellow member, Place 6 Councilor and Mayor Pro-tem Craig Magerkurth, who abstained from the vote. He was selected among four candidates for the job.
The One Water treatment plant should break ground in the first quarter of 2025, and construction should span about three years. Magerkurth will represent the city in major and minor decisions as the plant is built.
Marble Falls Mayor Dave Rhodes said the contract was awarded based on Magerkurth’s three decades of experience in large-scale construction projects and his reasonable bid.
“From a qualification standpoint, he is more qualified than anybody else we saw,” Rhodes told DailyTrib.com following the council’s decision. “To me, it was an easy choice.”
Magerkurth has extensive experience in large-scale construction through his service in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and oversight of massive infrastructure projects in Chicago and Anchorage, Alaska.
His bid for professional services was the lowest of the four received by the city at $110 per hour. The other bids were $125 per hour from Spire Consulting Group, $145 per hour from Plus Six Engineering, and $175 per hour from SpawGlass.
The contract ultimately approved by the City Council amounted to $175,000 for the first year of work with a 3 percent increase in the subsequent two years of the project, which totals $540,907.50.
Rhodes understood potential concerns about a conflict of interest with Magerkurth being an elected city official but reinforced his and the council’s decision.
“All of us, as elected officials, have skill sets as well as things we do on a regular basis for the city,” the mayor said. “When you live in a smaller town, this happens all the time. Would you rather have us spend that money somewhere else?”
Magerkurth told DailyTrib.com he took measures to ensure transparency throughout the process. He filed his intention to go out for bid and represent the city with the Texas Ethics Commission at the recommendation of Marble Falls City Attorney Josh Brockman-Weber and agreed to abstain from any council vote concerning the job.
“I want this to be done correctly, and I look forward to talking to anybody who thinks that it’s wrong,” he said. “I am very confident that there is no conflict of interest here, both with the attorney and my own personal ethics. My one goal here is to complete a fantastic project for the city. I’m local, I have skin in the game, and I’ve raised my kids here.”
Magerkurth also told DailyTrib.com he intends to step down as mayor pro-tem to remove further possibilities of conflict of interest in city decision-making, as he would serve as the mayor in Rhodes’ absence.
Councilor Bryan Walker was the only “no” vote against Magerkurth.
“Craig is hands down the most qualified. I have zero issues with his qualifications,” he told DailyTrib.com. “(My vote) is because it is such a high-level administrative position. I’d just prefer that it wasn’t awarded to a member of council while they’re still serving.”
Councilors Griff Morris and Richard Westerman voted in favor of awarding Magerkurth the contract along with Mayor Rhodes. Councilors Lauren Haltom and Karlee Cauble were absent for the vote.
Marble Falls City Manager Mike Hodge weighed in on the decision, stating he had seen council members awarded city contracts in other municipalities for which he has worked.
“As long as they’re qualified and they go through the process, I have no problem,” Hodge said.