Washington board approves slip‑lining on Front Street sewer, adds Stonecrest stormwater work

The City of Washington Board of Public Works on Jan. 28 voted to proceed with slip‑lining a segment of the sewer line on Front Street and to include related stormwater work in Stonecrest, officials said.

Board members approved moving forward after staff described a contractor estimate and schedule uncertainties. The work will include slip‑lining a section from the previously replaced pipe down to Lafayette Street and will extend through an older existing manhole that staff said dates to 1980 or earlier.

Kevin, staff member, told the board the contractor’s written quote was $59,000 for the slip‑lining but that the bid included only one hour of cleaning; he said the actual cleaning time could be “3 hours or 6 hours or 8 hours” depending on sludge in the line and that additional hourly charges would raise the final cost. “It’s gonna be, $59,000 to slip line it,” Kevin said. He said staff will combine the slip‑lining and the pending Stonecrest stormwater proposals into a single package and email members with the added cost for Stonecrest when the numbers are available.

Kevin described why the new pipe will be slip‑lined despite being recently installed: the tie‑in to the existing manhole proved difficult. “We’re gonna slip line that all the way to that manhole and through that manhole to make sure we don’t have any problems in the future,” he said. He added the manhole will be spray‑lined after the work.

During the wastewater update staff reported removing a lift station on Rabbit Trail and tying a gravity line to the treatment plant to serve existing and future development. “The station was taken offline yesterday, and the gravity line was tied in yesterday,” Kevin said, noting the lift station had been prone to clogging and motor wear.

Staff also described a sewer backup on Sixth Street caused by a roughly 3‑foot plug of single‑use wipes. Kevin said crews recovered the plug and documented it but did not include images in the meeting packet. “About 3 foot long, just a plug of hand wipes that plug the line up,” he said.

At the treatment plant, staff reported ongoing delays in replacement parts for influent pumps and for a belt press; Kevin said lead times have stretched to about six months for some equipment and that operations are “limping the belt press along” while waiting for parts.

Board members motioned and voted to authorize staff to proceed with the slip‑lining and associated work; members approved the motion by voice vote (no roll‑call tally recorded in the minutes). Kevin said the slip‑lining budget for the utility will be largely consumed by the Front Street and Stonecrest work and that further projects will be limited until the fund recovers.

The board set a revised February meeting date (moved from Feb. 25 to Feb. 18) to ensure quorum and adjourned after the business was completed.

Why it matters: The slip‑lining and associated stormwater work address aging sewer infrastructure and recent clogging and capacity issues; the board’s decision begins the procurement and scheduling steps that will determine final costs and construction timing.