New Jersey American Water held two public meetings for residents who will be affected by water and sewer improvements in Haddonfield. The meetings were held for Coles Mill Road and Roberts Avenue residents, as the existing water and sewer utilities would be replaced near residents of these areas.
Senior Project Engineer Jeff DeRusso and Stephanie Cuthbert of Remington and Vernick spoke at the Roberts Avenue meeting on Monday, Nov. 28, letting residents know what will be done and what the project will look like, and to answer any questions residents had.
The Roberts Avenue project is a $2.5 million project that will replace and relocate the lift station near there, as well as install new gravity and force main piping. The location will be put near the intersection of Roberts and Wellington avenues with little to no set back.
The lift station will be below grade, except for the electrical controls and emergency power, and surrounded by a six-foot fence with landscaping to make it more aesthetically pleasing. The old lift station was in need of replacing as it was built in the early 1900s and is not the appropriate size or location, due to Green Space and wetlands, according to Cuthbert.
DeRusso said the new location could not be changed at this point, but the size, fencing and landscaping could be based on residential input. Construction should begin soon.
Resident Karen McEntire asked about putting the lift station at the end of Roberts Avenue as to not disturb the neighbors and keep it more out of sight. Cuthbert explained the only real place to put it was at its projected location to intercept the water flows. Business Administrator Sharon McCullough confirmed the borough was also looking at that location, or very close to it, for the pump station for when it owned the utility.
“It is very complicated. We had to have an area where we could intercept the right flow … where they meet is at this location,” Cuthbert said.
Roberts Avenue residents expressed displeasure in having little input on the location of the projects as well as no previous communication.
“We all know we need a better pumping station. No one is complaining about that, but we are complaining, how is it that we received a document that said construction starting in November (without notification beforehand)?” Mary Previte said.
“It is very gracious for NJAW to come out and talk to us about it tonight. But there are several points where we probably would have had an opinion … We’re really concerned about why we were not informed about this earlier,” McEntire said.
DeRusso said he would be working on better communication in the future.
The other NJAW projects include building two other sewer lift stations on Atlantic Avenue and Coles Mill Road and replacing the existing water and sewer utilities around these sites. The projects are estimated to cost $8 million. Together, these projects will better meet peak flows, improve service reliability, reduce service disruptions and relocate utilities out of environmentally sensitive areas, according to NJAW.
Further information on the projects NJAW will be doing can be found on its website at www.newjerseyamwater.com. A full release on the projects can be found at www.haddonfieldsun.com/2016/12/05/new-jersey-american-water/.
