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Mayor says Jefferson relief sewer project on schedule, urges patience from businesses and drivers
Summary
Mayor Wabby told the City Council the Jefferson relief sewer project—led by the SMSD sanitary district and funded largely by county and ARPA dollars—aims to cut combined sewer overflows into Lake St. Clair and reduce basement backups. He said construction will require single-lane northbound traffic near 10 Mile through mid‑June and that major paving phases continue through Thanksgiving.
Mayor Wabby gave the council a detailed update on the Jefferson relief sewer project, saying the work is aimed primarily at improving water quality by reducing combined sewer overflows into Lake St. Clair and helping to prevent basement backups. He said the project is run by the Southeast Macomb Sanitary District (SMSD), not the city, and that funding has included ARPA dollars and significant county contributions. "At the end of the day this project is about water quality," he said, describing an expected reduction in overflows and the scale of the work.
Wabby and staff explained technical and traffic challenges that required switching to a northbound-only configuration on Jefferson Avenue near 10 Mile. The mayor said crews encountered a constrained alignment that requires repeated repositioning of the boring machine, deep excavations (around 25 feet), and unavoidable interactions with existing infrastructure. He told council that 10 Mile would be closed while the pipe is raised and that staff expect 10 Mile to re-open around June 12, with a goal—if no unforeseen issues arise—of opening sooner.
Council members pressed on two community priorities: business access and signage/communication. Council member Burgess and others urged residents to patronize nautical-mile businesses during construction, and Council member Karen acknowledged early signage mistakes that funneled traffic onto Lakeland and apologized to affected residents. Staff said additional detour and “local traffic only” signage and police traffic controls were added after problems were reported and that the city would amplify targeted social‑media notices when 10 Mile re‑opens.
Project timeline: Wabby said crews expect the relief pipe and connections to be in place near the Bonner/Shore Point area in February–March of 2027, with cement paving on the west side north of 10 Mile through mid‑August and a flip to the east side that should be substantially complete by Thanksgiving. He cautioned that deep tunneling is fluid and that schedule changes are possible if unforeseen subsurface conditions arise.
Why it matters: Council framed the work as an expensive, technical effort to remove millions of gallons of sewer overflow from the lake and to protect private basements and public health. Several council members emphasized safety over short‑term convenience, explaining that single‑lane routing near 10 Mile was chosen when two‑lane configurations proved unsafe or undermined pavement.
What’s next: Staff said they will continue to evaluate lane configurations to reduce business impacts where safe, push contractors to maintain progress, and amplify reopenings and other traffic changes on the city web site and social channels. Mayor Wabby invited questions and asked residents for patience as crews complete complex tunneling and deep-bore work.
