Final two Rescue Plan water projects wrapping in Watertown

May 15—WATERTOWN — In 2022, the city began an impressive plan to spend about $22 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding, Watertown's largest investment ever in water main projects.

The eight projects collectively will result in 20,102 feet, or 3.8 miles of new steel pipe that will be installed. Six of those project were already completed.

Now two years later, the city will wrap up the ambitious plan this construction season with the last two remaining water main projects using ARPA funding.

Earlier this week, work began on replacing 2,558 feet of water lines along Winslow Street.

The first sign of the project came when orange construction fencing was installed recently to protect trees along the residential city street during the construction.

Construction crews used heavy equipment on Wednesday to dig a large hole at the intersection of Winslow and Washington streets.

"That's going on right now," city engineer Tom Compo said Wednesday morning.

The general contractor is Edge Civil Corp., Parish, for the new water main along Winslow Street and another on Ohio Street, the final project using ARPA dollars. The local engineering firm of Aubertine and Currier designed the two projects.

Once the company finishes the work on Winslow, Edge Civil will move over to Ohio Street to install just shy of 2,500 feet of new water lines to replace cast-iron piping first installed in 1959.

The city is waiting for the end of the school year so the project doesn't cause any disruption at Ohio Elementary School, Compo said.

The company was the low bidder for both projects, submitting an $834,974 bid for Ohio Street and $932,635.00 for the Winslow Street job.

Both projects should be finished during this construction season.

On Monday, the Winslow Street project will close down the intersection of Winslow and Hamlin streets.

Without ARPA funding, the city would never have been able to finish so many water main projects, totaling $6.6 million, in such a short amount of time, city officials have said. Some of the projects had been planned for years.

Other water main work occurred on Barben/Holcomb/Bugbee streets; Division Street; East Main Street; Henry/Grant streets; Pratt Street; Sherman Street; and Thompson Street.

The eight water main projects varied in size and each cost between $200,000 and $1.4 million. Some of the work involves replacing piping that dates back more than 100 years.

While there's a lot of work to get done this season, it will not be anywhere near how busy it was last year. City officials called the 2023 construction season Watertown's busiest in decades.

With so much construction going on last year, motorists had, at times, difficulty maneuvering around all the orange construction cones throughout the city, causing frustration for them to change their routes, with little warning.

"I'm not anticipating that it will be as busy as last year," Compo said.

The reconstruction of Burlington Street is the only other major street project that will begins this season for the city. Bids will be opened at 11 a.m. May 29 for the project.

The project consists of total reconstruction of the street and installing new sidewalks, curbing, utilities, sewers and sidewalk ramps compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Burlington Street will then become a one-way street.

The city also is putting the finishing touches on the roughly $4 million downtown streetscape project on Court Street and along sections of Washington and Franklin streets.

The biggest remaining item is a new fountain, with a single vertical spray, that will be installed in the newly renovated Lachenauer Plaza.

This year, the city also is wrapping up a program to install handicap ramps at 150 intersections throughout the city, Compo said.

Meanwhile, the city's public works department will complete $1.8 million in milling work on sections of nine streets this year, according to Public Works Superintendent Brian MacCue.