Hot Springs Board of Directors

June 24, 2025 Civic Briefing

Hot Springs Board Reviews $288K Water Plant Engineering Contract, $100K Sports Master Plan, and Records Shredding Authorization

At its June 24, 2025 agenda meeting, the Hot Springs Board of Directors reviewed four resolutions totaling $388,036.16 in identified spending: a $288,000 engineering contract for water treatment upgrades at the Washtau plant, a $100,000 professional services contract for a sports and recreation master plan, and a $36.16-per-pound shredding services contract tied to authorized destruction of city records.

Hot Springs Board of Directors Agenda Meeting June 24, 2025 Confidence: Medium Independent — not affiliated with the City of Hot Springs

Published: May 17, 2026 · Last updated: May 17, 2026

View source notes Watch meeting ↗

The short version

The Board reviewed a $288,000 contract with Christ Engineers, Inc. to design upgrades to aging tube settlers at the Washtau Water Treatment Plant — engineering and design only, not construction.
The Board also reviewed a $100,000 contract with Half Associates, Inc. to develop a comprehensive sports and recreation master plan focused on soccer, pickleball, and tennis facilities.
Two related records resolutions were on the agenda: one authorizing destruction of city records that have met their legally required retention periods, and a second contracting with ROC Solid Shredding to carry out that work at $36.16 per pound.
All four items were presented as agenda items; the available record does not show final votes or formal action taken at this session.
No resident questions were submitted for this meeting cycle, and no emergency or ratification items appeared on the agenda.

By the numbers

Total identified spending

$388,036

Votes taken

includes procedural votes

Unanimous votes

Largest single item

$288,000

Engineering Contract for Washtau Water Treatment Plant Plate Settler Project

Emergency / ratification items

Resident questions unanswered

Money approved

Item	Amount	Vendor	Vote	Source
Engineering design for Washtau Water Treatment Plant plate settler upgrades	$288,000	Christ Engineers, Inc.	Not confirmed in available record	`item:3`
Sports and recreation master plan	$100,000	Half Associates, Inc.	Not confirmed in available record	`item:4`
Records shredding services (per-pound contract)	—	ROC, DOC, LLC (dba ROC Solid Shredding)	Not confirmed in available record	`item:2`
Total identified spending	$388,000

Major decisions

Engineering Design Contract — Washtau Water Treatment Plant Plate Settlers

Item: Proposed bid award of a professional engineering design and bidding services contract to Christ Engineers, Inc. for the Washtau Water Treatment Plant Plate Settler Project. This covers design services only — not construction.
Vote: Not confirmed in available record
Cost: $288,000, funded from the 2023 water bond fund
Vendor / responsible: Christ Engineers, Inc.
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: The project aims to upgrade tube settlers in basins one through five at the Washtau plant, which staff described as creating ongoing difficulties in water treatment. Basins two and three share a common wall requiring specialized structural engineering. Design is expected to take 180 days; construction is a separate, later phase.
What the Board said or did: Staff explained that basins six and seven already have newer stainless steel plate settlers and that the remaining basins still use older tube settlers. The engineering work will produce a construction cost estimate. Staff indicated construction of basins two and three would likely come first, with basins one, four, and five potentially funded through water capital improvement funds in the future.
What remains unclear: The construction cost estimate has not yet been produced — it is an output of this engineering contract. Funding for basins one, four, and five beyond this contract has not been committed.
Source: item:3

Sports and Recreation Master Plan Contract

Item: Proposed professional services agreement with Half Associates, Inc. to develop a comprehensive master plan for sports and recreation, with specific focus on soccer, pickleball, and tennis.
Vote: Not confirmed in available record
Cost: $100,000
Vendor / responsible: Half Associates, Inc.
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: The plan is intended to guide future improvements to athletic fields and sports courts, and to shape programming decisions for municipal sports facilities, with community input as part of the process.
What the Board said or did: Staff noted the Sports Recreation Department issued a request for qualifications in early 2025. The master plan is described as covering short- and long-term physical improvements and recreational programming.
What remains unclear: The timeline for completing the plan, which specific facilities will be evaluated, and how community input will be collected are not specified in the available record.
Source: item:4

Destruction of City Records — Authorization (R-25-130)

Item: Authorization to destroy city records that have met their legally required retention periods; shredding is scheduled for July 11 and July 25, 2025 at ASMSA.
Vote: Not confirmed in available record
Cost: No spending amount specified for this authorization
Vendor / responsible: ROC, DOC, LLC (dba ROC Solid Shredding)
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: Records being destroyed have met state- and federally-mandated retention periods (ranging from 3 to permanent). Digitized records have been preserved on Laserfish; only physical copies are being destroyed. A Board member must witness and sign an affidavit on each shredding date.
What the Board said or did: Staff from the City Clerk's Office explained the verification process, noted the two-truck shredding operation due to volume, and stated a detailed inventory spreadsheet would be included in the Board packet.
What remains unclear: The specific record types and volume involved are in a spreadsheet described as forthcoming in the Board packet — that document is not reflected in the available record here.
Source: item:1

Shredding Services Contract — ROC Solid Shredding (R-25-131)

Item: Proposed contract with ROC, DOC, LLC (dba ROC Solid Shredding) for on-site records shredding services at $36.16 per pound of shredded materials, authorized under state contract ACA 1458-104 and Hot Springs Code 261.
Vote: Not confirmed in available record
Cost: $36.16 per pound; total contract cost depends on volume
Vendor / responsible: ROC, DOC, LLC (dba ROC Solid Shredding)
Discussion level: Brief Brief presentation
Resident impact: Shredding will occur on-site with the vendor bringing trucks to ASMSA on July 11 and July 25, 2025.
What the Board said or did: Staff noted this is the first time ROC Solid Shredding has been available through a state contract, though the company has previously performed shredding services for the city.
What remains unclear: The total dollar cost of the shredding contract cannot be calculated from the available record because the total weight of materials has not been stated.
Source: item:2

Locations affected

Washtau Water Treatment Plant

Hot Springs

Engineering design contract for plate settler upgrades in basins one through five

Status: Scheduled
ASMSA (Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts)

Hot Springs

City records stored here will be shredded on July 11 and July 25, 2025

Status: Scheduled
Municipal sports facilities (fields and courts)

Hot Springs

Subject of sports and recreation master plan

Status: Planning

Watch list

Open follow-up issues we'll check on in future briefings.

Vote confirmation for four resolutions

Open

The available record does not confirm that any of the four resolutions received a formal vote at this session. The next briefing should verify whether R-25-130, R-25-131, R-25-132, and R-25-133 were adopted, tabled, or carried forward.

Why it matters: Establishing whether formal action was taken on agenda items is essential to understanding what commitments the city has made.
Next check: At next meeting or when minutes are published

Construction funding for Washtau basins one, four, and five

Open

Construction funding for Washtau basins one, four, and five has not been committed — staff indicated this may come from water capital improvement funds in the future, but no timeline or amount was specified.

Why it matters: Understanding the full scope and cost of the water plant upgrade project is necessary for budget planning.
Next check: When construction cost estimate is completed

Sports and recreation master plan timeline and process

Open

The sports and recreation master plan contract does not specify a delivery timeline or community engagement process in the available record; both are worth tracking when the plan work begins.

Why it matters: Community input and a clear timeline are important for successful planning outcomes.
Next check: When Half Associates, Inc. begins work and reports initial milestones

Final cost of records shredding contract

Open

The total cost of the ROC Solid Shredding contract will depend on the weight of materials destroyed; the final figure should be available after the July shredding dates.

Why it matters: The final cost will confirm the actual spending for this records management activity.
Next check: After July 11 and July 25, 2025 shredding events

Source notes

This briefing is based on the public records below. Every claim above can be traced back to one or more of these sources.

video: Meeting video and transcript
agenda: Agenda item 1 — Records destruction authorization
agenda: Agenda item 2 — ROC Solid Shredding contract
agenda: Agenda item 3 — Christ Engineers contract
agenda: Agenda item 4 — Half Associates sports master plan contract

Confidence: Medium

Video transcript and four parsed agenda items are available. However, no confirmed vote record is present in the available source material, which limits certainty about final actions taken.

How we know this

We do not invent facts.
We cite source records.
We distinguish what happened from what remains unclear.
We use neutral language.
We correct errors when found. See corrections.