Richmond Hill has agreed to a $150,000 settlement with an engineering firm it fired nearly two years ago regarding the design of the planned wastewater treatment facility.
The City Council members met in closed session for roughly 30 minutes at Wednesday’s meeting, then came out to announce a mediated settlement with Savannah-based H&K Engineering, a firm the city terminated its contract with in February 2012.
As a result of the agreement, the city will pay H&K Engineering $150,000, according to Mayor Harold Fowler.
Richmond Hill ended its contract with the firm over concerns that designs it submitted to the city for improvement to its wastewater treatment plant didn’t meet Environmental Protection Division standards, he said in February 2012.
Fowler said Wednesday night H&K initially sought $270,000 when it filed suit, claiming it had finished 60-percent of its design work.
“We’re happy with the mediation settlement and we’re ready to move forward,” he said.
The city is in the process of building a new $24 million wastewater treatment facility. Work on that project could get under way early next year, Fowler said.