By Robert Ball
Since 2000, Vicksburg and the South County Sewer and Water Authority have shared a sewer line delivering sewage to Kalamazoo’s sewage treatment plant.
Both are considering a larger replacement, in part to serve new development such as The Mill project in Vicksburg, in part to replacing aging infrastructure.
Vicksburg Village Manager Jim Mallery said the original pipe “goes back to the 1970s.” It’s called a “force main” because sewage must be pumped to a higher elevation so it can flow the rest of the way through Portage to the Kalamazoo facility. Inside diameter of the line is 8 inches. The replacement’s diameter would be twice that, providing for more development and more users, including The Mill project underway in Vicksburg.
Sewage is pumped from a lift station on Spruce Street in Vicksburg through the line to a sewage interceptor at Zylman in Portage. The new pipe would be installed, like the existing line, on Sprinkle.
The Authority provides sewage disposal to 630 users in the Pickerel-Indian Lake area. Mallery said the Vicksburg’s sewer system has about 1,500 users.
The authority commissioned the engineering firm of Prein and Newhof to develop specifications and costs for the authority to connect to the new force main, said its executive director, Frank LaPierre. The consultants will present the plan at a May 28 board meeting.
The board’s next step, LaPierre said, is engaging a municipal finance consultant to secure public funding for the work.
Mallery anticipates a total project cost of $10.6 million. He also anticipates that the cost may be offset by a $3.7 million grant.
The authority, he said, “wasn’t in a position to evaluate the pros and cons. We moved forward, received a grant from the Michigan Economic Development Authority” to plan for the project.
The new line can share and reduce future maintenance costs, LaPierre said.
“We are very pleased with the strong relationship that we have with the Village of Vicksburg,” said the authority’s chairman, John Speeter. “for years, the Vicksburg leadership has provided a very active and positive contribution as a member on our Board.”
