West Seneca is about to start one of the largest phases of its sewer rehabilitation project mandated by New York State.
It should help fix many of the issues related to sewage backup into basements and overflow into creeks, but comes with a price for the two sewer districts where the work will be done.
It will cost the owner of the average house assessed at $60,000 in about $75 a year for the next 30 years to pay off the bond, according to Supervisor Gary Dickson.
It could be more or less, depending on assessed property value.
The cost also could be lower if the town is able to secure grants, Dickson said. He also proposed using $1 million in American Rescue Plan funding for the work, and the town will be applying for state grants.
“This project, when it’s done, will have a noticeable impact on peoples lives,” Dickson said.
The project in districts 5 and 13 impacts most of the town north of Route 400, and includes about 75% of town sewer customers, he said.
Work involves lining of approximately 92,000 linear feet of sanitary sewer mains – some as large as 36 inches in diameter – and rehabilitation of approximately 380 manholes.
The town has spent about $17 million so far on fixing aging sewer pipes as part of a consent order from the state Department of Environmental Conservation. The order requires the town to eliminate sewage overflows into Cazenovia Creek and get control of private sources of stormwater inflow and groundwater infiltration into the sewer system. It was first imposed in 2004, and amended in 2008.
This phase was estimated to cost about $6 million, but is more than twice that cost. The Town Board last week approved the low bid of $15,191,650 from United Survey Inc., of Cleveland.
“My No. 1 priority is to prevent sewer backups into peoples’ basements, which still occur,” Dickson said.
The project, expected to start later this year, will take about 18 months to complete, he said.
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