County Farm, 10th, 11th, Meadowbrook to see most improvements
After years of preparation, a major overhaul of Cassville’s sanitary sewer system is set to replace two miles of pipe and repair three miles of pipe, accounting for more than 15 percent of the system.
With an expected price tag of $5 million, the goal is to replace or rehabilitate old pipe and manholes that let stormwater runoff into the system.
“We are cleaning up Cassville’s past,” said David Brock, Cassville Public Works administrator. “At one point, we had a lagoon, and then we build a modern treatment plant. But, we still rely on the lagoon in wet weather, and when it is full, we were allowed to discharge from it.
“In 2010, the rules were changed and we are not allowed to discharge any more. We must make improvements to our collection system; long term, it’s the best way to keep the lagoon down.”
The target area for all improvements is in the floodplain where, groundwater tables are the highest. Approximately 80 percent of the improvements will be traditional open trench construction, and the remainder will use a trenchless restoration process using cured-in-place pipe and manhole relining.
“These are our oldest and lowest pipes installed in the ‘40s and ’50s,” Brock said. “Almost all of them are rehabilitated vitrified clay tile pipes. It was the best technology at the time and used through the ’60s.”
Clay pipes are susceptible to root intrusion and can crack from sharp objects flowing through them. When that occurs, stormwater runoff can seep into the pipes, which in turn is put in the lagoon and processed by the treatment plant.
“It probably doubles or triples our flows through the treatment plant when we have multi-day rains,” Brock said. “Also, if water can get in, water can get out. In the dry summer months, we worry about the economic impact of sewage leaking out into the ground.”
The equipment upgrade aims to remedy inflow and infiltration challenges.
“Most of this new pipe is PVC, which is stronger,” Brock said. “We are also upsizing in areas where we have two sewer pipes running parallel, replacing those with a single larger pipe. Manholes will also be changed, too.”
The open trench construction will be disruptive in the immediate area of working machinery, and much of this work will occur within the paved portion of city streets. Residents should expect partial and full road closures, as well as temporary prohibitions to on-street parking.
Areas set to receive open trench repairs include:
• County Farm Road, from 11th Street to about 900 West 10th Street
• 11th Street from Main to Fair streets
• 10th Street from Harold to Fair streets, plus an area from 10th Street to the corner of Eighth and Mill streets
• Fair Street from 10th Street to 12th Street, cutting behind the building in the 1200 block of Fair Street to 13th Street and Park Avenue
• Park Avenue from 13th Street to Meadowbrook Drive
• Meadowbrook Drive from Park Avenue to Partridge Drive
• Partridge Drive from Meadowbrook Drive to the city’s Wastewater Treatment Plant The trenchless rehabilitation will use existing manholes to access the sewer lines. The machinery and equipment for this type of repairs will often be within street rights of way and may partially block one or both driving lanes.
Brock said work on the streets may start any day, with boring into Main Street at 11th Street one of the first tasks on the list. In all, the project should take about a year to complete.
The sewer line project will be followed by a water line project, all of which is funded by an $11 million bond issue passed in April 2017 by a 60-40 percent margin.
Brock said as the years have passed, the scope of work has diminished due to a set price point of $5 million.
“The cost of the project has not changed, we’ve had to reduce the amount of work to get the best bang for our buck,” he said.
The water line project is in the easement procurement phase, which Brock said is about four times as involved as the sewer project easements.
“We’ll be happy if we can bid this project out by this time next year,” he said. “We definitely do not want overlap and want to wind the sewer down before gearing up for water,” especially since much of the work is in the same areas.”
The project is being engineered by Allgeier, Martin and Associates. Full plans for the project may be viewed at https:// files4.revize.com/cassvillemo/ Downloadable%20 Docs/2022-04-08%20 RESEALED%20SET.pdf.
People may contact City Hall at 847-4441 for more information or to sign up for project announcements and updates via email.
