Heavy saturation from several days of rain caused the ground above the pipe to sink through the holes Monday and be flushed away. Duritsch said the pipe is about 60 years old and “beyond its reasonable life span.”
No homes are directly connected to the pipe and the incident has not caused a blockage. A bid by SK Construction indicates it will take at least $265,000 to replace the pipe — which stretches about 1,000 feet underground between two manholes. But Duritsch said given the age of the pipe, it’s possible more damage could be found that would increase costs.
Construction is expected to begin immediately. Residents living on Sixth Avenue should not be affected.
Because the sinkhole and subsequent damage to the pipe and bike path were not anticipated replacements, Duritsch said the city will stall plans to replace sewer linings on pipes off Yankee Road for at least another year.
The fix should be covered by the about $1.3 million in the sewer fund and will not result in an assessment to nearby homeowners, Duritsch said.
Many of Middletown’s sewer and water pipes are aging and Duritsch said it is difficult to assess their condition because they are underground. Regarding funding to repair roads, Duritsch said there is little money available to be proactive with pipe replacements.
“This is a common issue nationwide to not have the capital to replace aging infrastructure,” he said.
Councilman Josh Laubach said the city needs to map out plans to set aside money to make infrastructure repairs, and he hopes to figure out ways to allocate more money for roads and sewers in 2012.
“This potentially could be a really big issue down the road,” he said.
Contact this reporter at (513)
705-2843
or
jheffner
@coxohio.com.
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