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Bay Village outlines expanded sewer rehabilitation, Lake Road replacements and Huntington Woods drainage plan
Summary
City engineers told council Monday that sewer rehabilitation needs grew from an initial $750,000 estimate to roughly $1.3 million and described next steps for multiple projects including the Lake Douglas sewer replacement, an equalization tank, catch-basin work and a Huntington Woods drainage study.
Bay Village officials on Monday detailed a multi‑site program of sewer remediation and stormwater work that city consultants and engineers said is needed to reduce flooding, correct sewer overflows and meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency orders.
Jeff Filarski, the consultant overseeing the city's sewer projects, told the committee of the whole that an earlier, preliminary estimate of about $750,000 for city‑side sewer rehabilitation rose to approximately $1,300,000 after crews reviewed internal pipe videos and assessed additional damage. Filarski also said catch‑basin inflow repairs remain in design; an earlier, high‑level estimate for that work was about $500,000, he said.
The scope discussed on May 5 includes work already completed — the Long Beach force main lining — and several active and planned projects: the Lake Douglas sewer replacement (an EPA‑driven SSO elimination project), a large equalization tank under construction, localized sewer improvements at East Oakland and Clay, Wolf Road/Clay intersection work that will require short traffic shifts, and a Huntington Woods drainage study recommending a new relief storm sewer system sized up to 60 inches to carry combined flows to the lake.
Filarski described the equalization tank work in progress: welders are performing thermal welding on the tank pipe joints, followed by pressure testing using an inflatable bladder that presses outward to confirm joint tightness before backfilling. For the Lake Douglas project he said concrete manholes and related structures have been ordered and work should begin when materials arrive in about three to four weeks; the project also includes a water‑main replacement that Filarski said is being funded through the suburban water authority.
Filarski said crews encountered unrecorded utilities while installing sewer at East Oakland and Clay; the presence of electric ducts and an abandoned water main required the sewer alignment to be shifted an additional roughly eight feet in one location, increasing cost. For Huntington Woods, the report to council recommended installing a 24‑inch relief storm sewer along the street and upsizing an existing 42‑inch line to a 60‑inch pipe near Bradley to reduce hydraulic grade lines that had been predicted to reach below basement levels in a 25‑year storm.
Discussion and decisions
Council members and staff separated discussion items from authorizing actions. Council approved administrative steps to move design contracts and bid advertising forward: an ordinance authorizing the mayor to enter an agreement with Chagrin Valley Engineering for sewer rehabilitation project services was adopted; council also approved advertising for bids for the sanitary sewer rehabilitation project and, separately, for the storm sewer catch‑basin improvements. Those procedural actions were described as necessary to keep the projects on an aggressive schedule.
Funding and timeline
Filarski said the increased rehabilitation price reflects detailed review of pipe video footage and that council's capital sewer improvement fund is the anticipated source for the city‑side work. He estimated cost proposals for the Huntington Woods study would be available by July, and said right‑of‑way reviews are ongoing and may affect schedule and cost.
Why it matters
City officials emphasized the projects respond both to frequent local flooding and to federal requirements for eliminating sanitary sewer overflows. Council members said the work remains a high priority; staff warned that rising construction costs and unrecorded underground utilities have increased overall project estimates and could require additional funding approvals.
Quotes
"When we got into reviewing those locations... we see the need to increase that to about 1,300,000," said Jeff Filarski, describing the scope and revised estimate for city‑side sewer rehabilitation.
"It's been our number 1 priority to try to mitigate and reduce... flooding and infiltration," Council President Dwight Clark said as the committee discussed funding and schedule.
Ending
Council members instructed staff to continue the design, to advertise the rehabilitation and catch‑basin contracts for bid, and to return with cost details and contract language for formal approvals in coming meetings.
