City administrators have warned council that a sewage and wastewater pumping station in the Broadway neighbourhood is approaching failure, and the cost of a temporary fix could reach $25,000 a month.
In a report before council this week, an engineer with Saskatoon Water said staff identified the mechanical failure in November. The underground pump located in the boulevard of Lansdowne Avenue at the 8th Street intersection, built in 1963, was already slated for replacement in the next ten years.
Now, city engineers say that timeline needs to be shortened.
“With the current state of failure, Saskatoon Water recommends accelerating this timeline by funding the work from the Wastewater Treatment Capital Reserve, reducing the risk of needing a bypass,” writes Mitch McMann, engineering services manager with Saskatoon Water.
McMann says the 62-year-old pump system is now obsolete and it’s impossible to procure replacement parts.
Since identifying the issue in November, the city was able to source some locally-machined temporary parts for $30,000 to keep the wastewater flowing. But officials are concerned the system will deteriorate to the point where they need to install a bypass over land.
“Based on the current configuration of the [lift station] located in the boulevard on Lansdowne Avenue at the 8th Street East intersection, the overland bypass would consist of temporary pumps and pipes on public roads with generators creating noise disturbances for nearby residents,” McMann writes.
“The temporary bypass system is expected to cost approximately $25,000 per month ($300,000 per year) to install and operate and is therefore not a long-term solution.”
Councillors unanimously approved the spending at their regular meeting on Wednesday, agreeing to pull $300,000 from a wastewater treatment capital reserve.
Design work on the new lift station is expected to start this year, with construction scheduled for 2026.
