Cleveland Renewing Contract for Underground Utility Locating Services

Cleveland is moving forward with plans to ensure underground infrastructure remains safely marked during excavation projects. City Council has passed emergency ordinance 596-2026, which authorizes the Director of Public Utilities to exercise the first renewal option for a contract with One Call Concepts Locating Services, Inc. This agreement provides the professional services necessary to locate and mark underground utilities, a critical task for preventing damage to city infrastructure when digging occurs in the public right-of-way.

According to the 596-2026 Legislative Summary, the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) manages approximately 170,000 marking requests annually through the Ohio Utilities Protection Service (OUPS) system. This contract supports the DPU’s Divisions of Water, Cleveland Public Power, and Water Pollution Control. The estimated cost for this first one-year renewal is $1,874,000, funded through 2026 operating funds. The workload includes responding to OUPS tickets, reviewing maps and GIS information, and physically marking infrastructure with flags or spray paint to comply with Ohio’s Damage Prevention Law. The document notes that the vendor has agreed to the original contract fee table and maintains a 10% participation rate for Cleveland School District Business (CSB) goals.

The ordinance has passed, allowing the city to proceed with the one-year contract extension to avoid a lapse when the current agreement expires on September 19, 2026. Residents can monitor future City Council sessions for updates regarding the Department of Public Utilities' operational contracts and infrastructure management.

Source record

File
596-2026
Type
Emergency Ordinance
Status
Passed
Committee
City Council
Introduced
May 6, 2026

View on Cleveland Legistar

Official documents

Sources