While many projects in Fort Wayne have required delays or extensions as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, City Utilities has continued to make progress on its sewer consolidation project.
Today, construction crews begin work on a 48-inch consolidation sewer on the St. Joseph River, as the long-term project moves eastward. As a result, the stretch between Superior Street and Barr Street will be closed and work is expected to last through the summer.
The work is part of a larger consent decree that was passed in 2008, committing $380 million to bring Fort Wayne’s rivers into compliance with EPA standards by reducing combined sewage overflows by 2025. City Utilities spokesperson Frank Suarez says they’re on track to meet that target.
A massive tunnel boring machine, nicknamed MamaJo by residents, has been used for the more significant digging involved in the project. That is also on schedule for completion in 2023.
The work begins as Fort Wayne celebrates three years since its last combined sewer overflow on the St. Joseph River. In that time, an estimated 33 million gallons of sewage has been kept out of the river, which has protected roughly 500 homes from flooding.
