Northwood sewer project plans under environmental review; construction could start this fall
Mar. 8—NORTHWOOD, N.D. — Construction to replace parts of the sanitary sewer system in Northwood could start later this year. But the project will last into 2023, says Greg Boppre, office manager at Widseth, the engineering, architectural, environmental and surveying company overseeing the project.
The project will address two health and safety issues in Northwood by replacing and repairing parts of the city's sanitary sewer systems. Lift station No. 5 will be replaced with a new lift station at the corner of Washington Avenue and Park Street. The project will also replace the sanitary sewer line along Washington Avenue that runs under the BNSF railroad.
"It will go into 2023, specifically because of all the delays in getting equipment," said Boppre. "We've got electric components, a generator and large pumps, so a lot of things that used to be fairly feasible to get on time, that are now months out to get those sort of things."
The project is currently in a period of environmental review, which is required because of a $1.24 million community development block grant awarded by North Dakota Department of Commerce last November.
"When you obtain government funding, or work with the city to get government funding for a project, they always have to make sure that it is going to be a good project for the community and not going to harm the environment," said Gail Leverson, senior funding specialist at Widseth.
After the environmental review is complete, Widseth can advertise the project for bids. Boppre expects that to be in May, June or July of this year, and says the goal is to start the project in the fall.
When it was awarded in November, Boppre estimated the $1.24 million grant will cover 80% of costs for the project, but until after the bidding process, the final cost of the project is unknown.
"We all know prices have risen on almost everything we buy these days, so hopefully we can get to some sort of happier place and some of the components we're looking for come down in price," said Boppre.
