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Lexington’s efforts to repair or upgrade the city’s sewer system to limit inflow and infiltration into the system has moved to the next phase: relining sewer pipes in the Providence Hill area.
At its meeting on June 15, Public Works Director Patrick Madigan updated Lexington City Council on the project, which is now underway.
“We’ve been talking about [inflow and infiltration] for a while, and it’s definitely going to be a decade-long challenge for us,” Madigan said to Council. “This is not unique to Lexington. This is everywhere on the planet that has a sewer system that they have to deal with this issue. It’s based on the age of the system.”
Inflow occurs when stormwater flows into the system through downspouts, foundation drains and holes in manhole covers, while infiltration is what happens when ground water runs into the waste water system by seeping through holes, cracks, joint failures and faulty connections. Other projects to address this issue have already been completed in other parts of the city. Most recently, a complete replacement of the sewer system in the Diamond Hill area was done, which was required due to the age of the pipes.
Since the pipes in the Providence Hill area are newer than the ones in Diamond Hill, they are candidates for relining, which is a preventative measure that seals cracks, holes and other sources of infiltration. The relining helps extend the life of the pipe, adding, by Madigan’s estimate, between 50 and 75 years to their use, and all for “seven to 10 times less cost than new construction.”
The plan for the Providence Hill area is divided into two phases.
The first phase, which is currently underway, includes the area east of Link Road, including Johnstone Street, Stonewall Street, Marshall Street and Oakview Drive. Notices were sent to residents in those areas informing them of the work being done and telling them what steps to take when it is happening on their portion of the street, including avoiding sending any waste water down the system while the work is being done as the sewer connection between the house and the system will need to be turned off in order for the work to be done.
Madigan informed Council that the contractor has a device that can reestablish the connection remotely, but if it fails, it will need to be done manually, which will require some excavation, which was also included in the notices.
Additionally, residents are being asked to put some water in any drains to help create a seal that will prevent the odor from the relining material from entering the home. Residents are receiving a second notice reminding them of these steps as the scheduled work progresses through each neighborhood.
Phase one of the project will be completed in the next few weeks, depending on the amount of rain that happens in that time frame and whether any digging will need to be done to reestablish connections between houses and the sewer system. Phase two of the project – which will include the area along Thornhill Road between Lexington Avenue and Birdfield Road, the area west of Sunset Drive, including Paxton Street and Bowyer Lane, and the area west of Marshall street, including Ross Road and Rebel Ridge Road – does not have a set timeline yet and is predicated on receiving funding from the city for the project.
Madigan told Council that that area was also likely a “good candidate” for relining, but that a survey of the system would be required to see the extent of the repairs required in the area. A similar survey was done for the area covered in phase one, with a handful of point repairs needing to be completed to replaced more severely damaged portions of pipe. Additionally, several new manholes were installed and all of the existing manholes were relined to prevent inflow into the system.
Madigan estimated that the repairs that had already been done had cost around $600,000 with a target estimate of $500,000 for the work that is still remaining.
