Griffin Park Sewer Repair Scheduled
This week, repair work on the failing sanitary sewer pipe that runs through Griffin Park will begin.
Tonight, pending legal review, the Pierre City Commission approved four separate contracts to push the repair work into motion. The group approved an agreement with Burns MacDonald, a sanitary sewer consulting company, to engineer the project. Additionally, Morris Inc., was hired to replace 150 ft. of failing pipe; Subsurface Inc., was hired to line an additional 485 ft. of existing pipe; and Mersino was hired to remove the groundwater from the sewer line trench.
“This project requires a team of professionals who are experts in working in these challenging conditions,” said Kristi Honeywell, Pierre City Administrator. “Operationally, the first step is getting all the ground water out of the hole.”
Mersino will start the dewatering process this week utilizing the same sand-point system used earlier this summer to solve a separate, but related, sewer repair project in Griffin Park. Altogether, the repair work is expected to take three weeks and cost the City more than $300,000.
“The repair project is an unfortunate side effect of the high groundwater levels we’re experiencing this year,” said Honeywell. “The saturated ground makes for unstable soil –causing our sewer lines to become stressed and the repair work to become more complex.”
According to Honeywell, the City is using fiberglass materials for the repair work in Griffin Park. Fiberglass is more durable than traditional pipe materials; its use is expected to mitigate future challenges presented by high groundwater levels.
Water Rate Change
Also tonight, the Commission took final action on the water rate change. The change is the result of the Water Treatment Facility project approved by voters last summer.
In January, Water rates will increase by an average of $3.55 per month, per residential customer. The actual increase depends on individual water use. To help finance the $37-million water treatment facility, the Commission intends to increase water rates annually through 2023.