STREET IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE
October 28, 2010
Minutes
The Street Improvement Committee met on Thursday, October 28, 2010 commencing at 7:00 P.M. in the Council Chambers at Lewes City Hall, in accordance with proper notification, with the following members present: Councilpersons Ted Becker and Victor Letonoff, BPW Commissioner James Richmann. Also in attendance were City Manager Paul Eckrich, BPW General Manager Ken Mecham, Engineers Charles O'Donnell and Vince Luciani of GMB and Recording Secretary Jackie Doherty. BPW Commissioner James Carmean was excused.
Chairperson Becker called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. Tonight's meeting is to review the sanitary sewer line, stormwater management, underground utilities and the Lewes Fire Company's request for a 16-foot fire lane for emergency access of the ladder truck and the impact this will have on the street.
1. Presentation and consideration of the minutes from August 19, 2010 Street Improvement Committee meeting.
Mr. Richmann made a motion to approve the minutes from the August 19, 2010 meeting as corrected; Mr. Letonoff seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.
2. Continued discussion on the Bay Avenue Rehabilitation Project.
Mr. Becker stated letters received after the meeting of August 19, 2010 will be incorporated by reference into the record and will be available in City Hall for review. Letters were received from the following: Dale Parsons, Nancy DiOrzio, David Heather Sheehan, Mr. Mrs. Marty, Ed Wyatt and Mr. Mrs. Fogg.
Mr. Becker stated Bay Avenue is a concern for everyone since it is a multipurpose street with no sidewalks, sewers, curbs or gutters. While it is important to preserve the flavor of the street, the main concern is for the health, safety and welfare of the residents. This is a preliminary plan and no decisions will be made tonight.
Mr. O'Donnell stated no final design will be started until there is further discussion on the issues of concern. Discussion tonight will include: Sanitary sewer replacement and the BPW camera to video the condition and materials of the sewer pipe; stormwater management options and alternatives include ponding areas; underground utilities including electric, telephone and cable; Fire Chief's comments and request for a 16-foot wide accessible area for the ladder truck, emergency access from Cedar Avenue or Savannah Road onto Bay Avenue.
Sanitary Sewer The BPW video of the entire length of Bay Avenue's sanitary sewer pipe showed the 60-year-old terracotta clay material to be in very bad condition and will need to be replaced. This will include replacement of the manholes and service will be needed to each home to be served off that line. Work will be needed on the manholes located outside the paved areas. A 10-foot separation is needed between the new water main and the new sanitary sewer. The Bay Avenue sewer connection will be to the existing on Cedar Avenue with the top part of the 'T' section and center manhole being replaced for the connection. The plan for a 4-foot-wide trench will cause some disturbance, but the contractor will restore any disruption caused by the construction back to the previous condition.
Mr. Becker stated that all the manholes are located in the City's right-of-ways.
Mr. Richmann questioned what the condition and materials are for the lateral lines on Cedar to Bay Avenue. Mr. Mecham stated that except for the streets between Cedar and Bay that have updated sanitary sewers, the material is terracotta. At this time, a massive replacement is not justified. Findings on Bay included broken and cracked pipes, tree roots and the installation was not consistent with grade; it would be cost-effective to replace at this time.
Jim Bastian, 700 Bay Avenue, stated when the sewer was installed, it replaced the existing cesspools. How will this new sewer be replaced? Mr. O'Donnell explained that each day a 200-to-300-foot section of sewer will be replaced and then will be tied back to the existing system for continuity of service.
Samuel DeBoer, 302 Bay Avenue, questioned what the new pipe material would be and what the material is for Cedar Avenue's sanitary pipe. Mr. O'Donnell said the new pipe material would be PVC.
Kelly Stuchlik, 8 Delaware Avenue, questioned the dewatering process. Mr. O'Donnell stated this would be necessary if the middle of the system was below ground level to install the pipe. Mr. Becker questioned if most of the stub streets into Bay Avenue had required the dewatering process. Mr. O'Donnell said most of these streets were resurfacing projects.
Joe Kelly, 7 New Hampshire Avenue, questioned where the lateral lines will be placed. Mr. O'Donnell said the lateral line would be the section that ties into the main on Bay Avenue to the property line that would serve each house. The material would also be PVC.
Terry Stuchlik, 8 Delaware Avenue, stated that there are manholes and sanitary sewer lines located on the right-of-way line.
Stormwater Management Mr. O'Donnell stated the first alternative would be a full stormwater system that would include catch basins to collect the water and be directed into pipes. The City has a similar system that goes into pipes and drains into the Canal or Canary Creek. If a full stormwater system was installed on Bay Avenue, it would be impossible for the water to reach the Canal or the Bay by gravity and would require pump stations. Because the pipe cannot go deeper than 12 feet, the pump station would collect all the drainage to be pumped to the wastewater plant or higher gravity. The cost estimate is $4.1 million.
The second system considered is infiltration and would include catch basins and a storm drain pipe for the water to go to a sub-surface detention/infiltration system. This would include semi-circular pipes surrounded in porous stone with the pipe from the surface discharging into the storm tech units. It is clear under the semi-circular pipes, which allows the water to be captured and it then drains into the underlying soils. This eliminates the expensive pump stations. Further analysis is needed of the ground water level and impact of the tides. The price for five piezometers to be placed in the ground to be used to monitor the ground water level hourly is about $4,000 to $5,000 and may be funded by grants. The infiltration alternative is designed to handle the two-year-storm, which is 3.4" over 24 hours. The estimated cost is $1.1 million for both sides of the street being 14,400 feet. Mr. Becker stated that the infiltration system does add to the cost of maintenance. Mr. O'Donnell stated this system is now present in Jefferson Court and the maintenance cost does include the unit being flushed out. Mr. Letonoff stated he is concerned about the impact on the infiltration system if there is a storm and storm surge at the same time. Mr. Luciani said this would be confirmed by the piezometer data. Mr. O'Donnell explained what is meant by Bay Avenue being in the 100-year flood plain. The estimated cost for doing one-half of the street would be $550,000 at 7,200 feet. The ponds would contain a pipe control device at an elevation to handle the first-flush of any storm. The use of porous pavement is being considered in conjunction with any stormwater alternative to take the water on the road to drain straight through the pavement. Mr. O'Donnell presented a sample of porous concrete and demonstrated how quickly the water will flow to the layers of gravel underneath by pouring water onto the concrete. Mr. Luciani stated the temperature of the porous asphalt and pavement stays above freezing at 34 to 35 degrees. Mr. O'Donnell stated there is no stormwater system that can handle the worst of storms and are designed to handle some level of intensity. Routine maintenance of the porous asphalt would require vacuuming sweeping on a regular basis by the City and should never be power washed. The long-term maintenance would require micro-surfacing which would be less expensive than adding all new pavement. The porous pavement should last 25 to 30 years on Bay Avenue. Although regular asphalt pavement is less expensive, there would be no stormwater benefits.
Councilperson Barbara Vaughan questioned if the porous pavement has been tested in areas where there is an abundance of sand and cannot be swept each day. Mr. O'Donnell stated he did not know of any test reports, but this would need to be a consideration and checked regularly.
Phillip Volturo, 6 East Canal Street, stated the grates that were installed on East and West Canal Streets have worked in the storm, the small ponds that form are gone within a few hours.
Linda Blumner, 118 Bay Avenue, said the grates have not worked on Bay View Avenue.
Mr. O' Donnell said this problem with elevation will need to be checked and the data from the piezometer may provide the answers. A third alternative may be an infiltration system designed to handle the low spots used in concert with the porous asphalt.
Bonnie Hebner, 107 New Jersey Avenue, questioned if the porous pavement would be poured or used in blocks. Mr. O'Donnell stated this would be poured like regular concrete.
Rosemary Kelly, 7 New Hampshire, asked what the cost would be per year for the flushing and vacuuming of the porous road surface, would there be as many catch basins, will the water drain all to the side of the road and would the infiltration system be needed with the use of more porous. Mr. O'Donnell said the water would drain straight through to the underlying stone, the plan is for two catch basins per block, the infiltration and porous systems will be insurance for each other and the cost of the flushing and vacuuming about once per month is not yet known.
Joe Schell, 1604 Bay Avenue, questioned if the infiltration device will be needed in certain areas along with the porous pavement. Mr. O'Donnell stated this would be based on the results of the ground water analysis including the use of all porous, some infiltration on the hot spots and the need for the 16-foot secondary fire lane access area. Mr. Becker stated a cost model is needed on the one-month sweep and results of the piezometer study.
Joe Kelly, 7 New Hampshire Avenue, is concerned about the system creating a problem with runoff and the problem with grade change by adding a 16-foot road. Mr. O'Donnell stated when completed, this will be a newly paved surface and there will be runoff from the sweep. There will be a 12-foot-wide paved surface with a 16-foot-wide clear space for the ladder truck to come through.
Rob Davis, 202 Savannah Road, stated he understands the porous paving of Bay itself would improve the runoff problems when the pot holes and hollows are eliminated.
Mr. Becker stated further discussion is needed in reference to the complete system, data from the piezometer study, additional information on the porous surface and maintenance costs.
Underground Utilities Mr. O'Donnell stated the cost estimated for the underground utilities including power, telephone and cable is $4.55 million. Verizon and Comcast will not provide the estimated cost per homeowner until 85% to 90% of the plans are presented. Some of the residents will also be responsible for the charges for water service change to the new main on Bay Avenue.
Mr. Becker stated the underground utilities seem to be cost prohibitive since the City cannot provide assistance with these charges, which Mr. O'Donnell estimates to be $30,000 to $50,000 per home based on street frontages.
Mr. Schell, 1604 Bay Avenue, questioned where underground utilities are located in the City. Mr. Becker stated that all new housing developments will be underground. Second Street was installed when the streets were redone and the wiring was minimal because the businesses and residents were fed from the rear with nothing from the front by Comcast and included most of the street lights. Letters will be sent to all residents asking if they want the underground utilities.
Rob Davis, 202 Savannah Road, asked if the transformers could be left on the poles to reduce the cost. Mr. Mecham stated the utility poles on Bay are not owned by BPW, but by Verizon. There are poles in the City owned by both Verizon and the City with an exchange agreement to do pole maintenance. Comcast pays a tariff for their space. In reference to the water, it will be the responsibility of the homeowner to pay the expense of connection from the property line to the home for the water line from the dunes to Bay. There may be assistance provided by BPW to be paid back in the utility bills over a period of time. Mr. O'Donnell stated the areas will be Market Street to Oregon Avenue on Bay that are serviced by that water main. Mr. Becker stated there is a 120-day time line to have the connection completed.
Ann Drew, 710 Bay Avenue, asked if there was a time frame for the work to begin and how will Summer only homeowners make arrangements. Mr. O'Donnell said the earliest it would be started would be after Labor Day 2011 so the work is not being done during the busy summer tourist season. A list of plumbers could be provided for the homeowner to contact to arrange a contract for the work. Mr. Becker said there may not be a final plan until February or March for a fall start date; time is needed to review all concerns and the results of the piezometer study.
Richard Bacon, 600 Bay Avenue, questioned if the 120-days would be enough time, or is it too short of a time frame for the contractors to be hired and start the work. Mr. Richmann, BPW, stated the dominating factor is the quality of the water in the main and the conversion needs to be done so the quality of the water will stay high. Mr. Mecham said as construction progresses, the plumbers can identify the high points and begin the switch-over process with the final connections done in a short period of time with more than 120-days to complete.