August 10, 2007

Water department continues infrastructure replacement

By LOU PENDLETON

Addressing aging infrastructure, the Bryan Water Department replaced the 4-inch cast iron water pipe on Elm Drive and Navarre Avenue last week. The waterline dated back to the early 1900s.

Norm Echler, water superintendent, said the troublesome water main has required numerous repairs during the past 10 years. “Elm Drive has been in the plans for four or five years, but it was delayed because of lack of funding for street improvements and the need to design a way for all utilities to fit in the narrow right of way.”

The right of way on Elm Drive, which intersects with West High Street east of South Lebanon Street, is only 30 feet wide instead of the normal 60 feet. The waterline replacement was coordinated ahead of planned street improvements including new pavement, curbs and gutters.

In all, 632 feet of pipe were replaced. The water crew installed 432 feet of 6-inch PVC pipe on Elm Drive and 200 feet of 8-inch PVC pipe on Navarre Avenue. The section on Navarre Avenue was replaced in order to connect the Elm Drive line to an 8-inch water main on Lebanon Street.

Mr. Echler said cost of materials for the project was about $24,000, and the work was completed by water department personnel. Once the street contractor is done on Elm Drive and the heavy equipment removed, the water crew will return to patch the pavement on Navarre Avenue.

The Elm Drive waterline is the second of three projects the water department planned for this summer. All three projects include installing new main line, service lines, valves and hydrants.

The first project, completed in June, was the replacement of 4-inch cast iron pipe with 8-inch PVC pipe on West Butler Street between Beech Street and Portland Street. The project cost approximately $16,200 for materials, and the water department supplied the labor and equipment. As with Elm Drive, the waterline upgrade was done in conjunction with improvements to the street.

The water department’s third project, planned for September, is to replace an 8-inch cast iron pipe from the original 1900s water system with new 8-inch pipe in the 100 block of West Butler Street (south side of the Courthouse Square). Mr. Echler said this portion of pipe has had a high number of leaks and breaks and has required significant maintenance. The project materials cost is estimated at $56,000.

The costs of this project are higher, Mr. Echler explained, because the water department will have to bore under Main Street and repave Butler Street when they finish.

The water department has outlined a plan for the next five years that calls for more than $250,000 per year investment into the system to replace water lines, hydrants, meters and valves to keep the water system in good condition.