Nearly three dozen village residents turned out Monday April 16 for a public-information session conducted by the village board of trustees regarding the Liverpool sanitary sewer improvement project. Most of the 78-year-old sewer mains along Oswego and Tulip streets will be replaced. Mains on both sides of Oswego Street between Fifth and Sixth streets will have the interiors of existing pipes lined. Work starts on Tulip Street this month, and by early-June work should begin on Oswego Street. The project should be completed by late October.

$1.1 million project

Excavation could start as early as April 18, said Charles Duncan Jr., a superintendent for Adhan Piping Co. of Cortland, which will do the work at cost of $1.1 million. The village government bonded for $2.5 million, but Adhan came in with a low bid less than half that amount. Village property owners are being levied about $150 per unit annually to pay off the debt service on the $2.5 million bond which could run up to 30 years.

Duncan and Rich DeGuida, a representative from the municipal engineering firm of Clough Harbour & Associates which is overseeing the sewer work, answered dozens of questions Monday from the attending residents, almost all of whom live on either Tulip or Oswego streets.

Trees a concern

Much discussion focused on how the digging of 14-foot-deep trenches may affect nearby trees. Trustee Nick Kochan noted that a professional arborist has already surveyed the streets’ trees and has marked in white those which may be threatened by the project.

“If people say they want to save a particular tree, we’ll work with you to try to make that happen,” Kochan said, but at least some of the trees will have to come down. “We have to have a practical decision-making process,” he said, urging residents to inform the village as soon as possible if they are concerned about certain trees in their neighborhoods.

Because $2.5 million has been bonded for the project, Mayor Marlene Ward said some of that money could be applied to tree-replacement.

One-lane mid-days

During rush hours, from 6 to 9 a.m. and from 4 to 6 p.m., DeGuida said, all traffic lanes on Oswego and Tulip streets will remain open. But between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., those streets will be reduced to one lane regulated by a flagman or -woman. An estimated 35,000 vehicles pass through the village daily. Excavation will be done primarily on the west side of each street, while directional drilling under each road will provide access to lateral lines from properties on the east sides of the streets.

On Oswego Street the work will run from Third Street to Meyers Lane, and on Tulip Street from Third Street to Seventh Street. On Tulip Street between Fifth and Sixth streets the work will shift over to the east side of the street, so as not to interfere with Liverpool Cemetery.

DeGuida predicted no significant loss of water service to homeowners and tenants while the work progresses. Residents will be notified in writing before work is to start on their block.

“The repairs will be made as quickly as possible to return water service to each residence,” the engineer said.

Safety stressed

Driveways will be saw-cut, DeGuida said, and some property owners will have their gravel or asphalt-covered right-of-ways between the sidewalk and the road returned to green areas. Duncan advised residents to let his crews work without getting in their way.

“Please don’t approach the crew or the holes without talking to someone about it first,” Duncan said. “We don’t want anyone hurt.”

Crews will install about 80 feet of new pipe each day. Anyone with concerns about the project should address them to Clough Harbour resident engineer Paul Tennity at (585) 208-4781 or via e-mail at [email protected].

According to Village Historian Dorianne Gutierrez, the village’s present sewer system was built in 1929. In recent years invasive tree roots have wreaked havoc with the old clay pipes causing blockages and backups that often require repairs. Village department of public works crews answer an average of ten or so such calls each month.

“Some of those repairs can cost up to $10,000 each, so we really need to do this,” Ward said. “Not to pat ourselves on the back, but we’ve taken a very proactive approach to our infrastructure. We want this project to go along smoothly, so we all have to work together and be patient.”