Sewer fees at work
Bryce Alderton
Residents needn’t wait to see their money in action.
Two projects are already underway using the funds from the new city
sewer fee.
The city has contracted with the AES Construction Co. to demolish and
replace two sewer lift stations under the streets of Huntington Beach.
One project is at Pacific Coast Highway and Admiralty Drive, and the
other is on the southbound side of Brookhurst Street, just south of
Atlanta Avenue.
The two sewer lift stations being repaired are among 27 city lift
stations designed to keep sewage flowing smoothly throughout the city
before it enters county sanitation plants for treatment.
“Huntington Beach is a flat city and if we don’t have gravity taking
the sewage through the pipes, the sewage has nowhere to go, and it might
overflow through manhole covers,” said city engineer Dave Webb.
AES has begun removing the pavement on Brookhurst and will soon dig a
28-foot hole in the ground.
This will enable crews to remove and construct a new collection system
that consists of two wells separated by a concrete wall. One well
collects the sewage and the other well pumps the sewage through pipes
toward sanitation district facilities.
The wells will be elevated about four feet off the ground at the
bottom of the hole to allow gravity to carry the sewage through the
system.
The southbound side of Brookhurst Street has been relegated to one
lane since work first began in June, and is expected to remain at one
lane until completion, which is expected by April.
“Construction is never convenient,” said deputy city engineer Doug
Stack.
Capacity problems and an aging system are the biggest reasons for the
construction.
The sewer stations were originally built in the 1960s.
“We have to make sure we can handle [sewage flow] in the future so we
don’t get all this backup,” Webb said. “Some of these stations are 40
years old and have reached the end of their useful life. We’re finally
seeing the fruits of the sewer fee.”
The sewer fee is in its first month after City Council voted to adopt
the fee in August. The fee, paid by all residents and businesses of
Huntington Beach, funds the maintenance and repair of sewer systems.
The fee is expected to raise about $5.6 million annually. The two
sewer station projects cost about $2.1 million combined. For Webb, these
projects are hopefully just the beginning of a citywide attempt to
improve infrastructure.
“This is just a component of what needs to happen. We still have storm
drains, city buildings [and] roads that need to have a funding
mechanism,” Webb said. “We have to start repairing items before they
fail. I’m in favor of most things that bring a revenue source whether
that be a tax or whatever.”
* BRYCE ALDERTON is the news assistant. He can be reached at (714)
965-7173 or by e-mail at bryce.alderton@latimes.com
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