The Salem City Council has approved a bid to replace a troublesome water line on South Broadway from Main to Kell Street.
JK Trotter was the low bidder at $689,030 for the project which will be funded by ARPA COVID-19 relief money. The bid was under estimate.
Public Works Director Annette Sola hopes the project is underway in 60 to 90 days with a four to five-month construction period. She says the improvement addresses a number of problems.
“It will increase water pressure and quality. We are going to add a couple new fire hydrants there so there will be a little more fire protection there as well so overall it’s going to be better. With the improvements we are making, we will tie lines together so we will loop a bigger section of town. Valves will also be put in place so if we have a water break we can shut down water without shutting the whole south end of town off.”
Sola says the water line will also give manufacturers on the south side as much water as they need. There have been limitations with the current waterline.
Sola says South Broadway will remain open throughout the construction period. With the exception of the immediate downtown area where sidewalks will be impacted, the waterline is located on the far side of the ditch off the roadway. Sola says they will do the project in sections so the entire length of the road is not torn up at the same time. The work will begin at Kell Street and move north.
