The Warren County Commission expects to award a contract early next week for a sewer pretreatment project after documents and proposals are reviewed by engineers. Of the four bids received by Monday's deadline, Warrenton-based Heggemann, Inc., had the apparent low bid of $55,353. A voluntary alternate also was provided by Heggemann, which would reduce the project cost substantially, but it needed to be reviewed further by engineers to see if it was feasible. Other bids were submitted by Huey Construction ($57,116), S&S Utility Contracting ($64,827.40) and Urban Built Construction ($118,600). The project estimate was around $40,000. The city of Warrenton is requiring the sewer pretreatment improvements because of concerns that garbage and other items are being flushed down toilets in the courthouse, particularly from the jail facility, and entering the sewer system. The pretreatment project will include a bar screen to catch items that have been flushed down toilets. The items will then be removed by a county maintenance employee. As part of the bid package, the project has been designed to allow for a grinder - the city's preferred system - in the future if needed. Commissioners balked at installing a grinder because they believe the less expensive bar system is a reliable solution. The city plans on making visual inspections for 60 days after the project is complete to ensure that the pretreatment system is functioning properly. Steve Schulze, of Shafer, Kline and Warren, the engineering firm representing the county, planned on reviewing the bid documents and forwarding a recommendation back to the county commission this week. Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, the commission won't meet again until Monday. Though the bids came in higher than the project estimate, commissioners appeared satisfied with the submissions and the possibility of working with a local company. "I was expecting (bids to be around) $60,000," Southern District Commissioner Hubie Kluesner said. "This was right in line." Commissioners, however, have yet to decide on where county funds will be allocated from to pay for the project though it will not be paid in full from the 2011 budget, according to Presiding Commissioner Arden Engelage. One option under consideration is using money from the building and grounds fund, a line item in the general revenue fund. The city requested the sewer pretreatment improvements since every manhole overflow must be reported as a violation to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and worries that similar incidents could cause damage to the sewer system. Under city codes, it's unlawful for any type of garbage to be discharged into the city's sewer main. In February, city workers discovered a jail jumpsuit and other garbage that had been flushed down toilets by inmates at the county jail and blocked the city's sewer main. Since early October, the city has been cleaning the manhole that services the courthouse facility on a daily basis and the cleaning charges will be added to the county's monthly sewer bill, which is currently being challenged by commissioners. A wide assortment of items that have been removed by city crews include potato chip bags, toothbrushes, toothpaste containers and food wrappers.