sewer | ALXnow

City Council to receive update on stormwater infrastructure projects

Published March 22, 2022 at 3:45PM

A construction crew installs a check valve on East Mason Street in November (via City of Alexandria)

City staff laid out what’s ahead for some of the city’s stormwater infrastructure projects in a presentation prepared for the City Council’s meeting tonight (Tuesday).

Three large projects to increase sewer capacity are planned in Del Ray, according to the Flood Action Alexandria presentation. Two of the projects — a $34 million undertaking at East Glebe Road and Commonwealth Avenue and a $16 million project at Ashby Street and East Glebe Road — were merged together for planning purposes. The two projects are next to each other in the Four Mile Run watershed.

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Alexandria gets federal funding for body cameras, storm sewer repairs and more

By Vernon Miles

Published March 14, 2022 at 9:45AM

Rep. Don Beyer (D-8th) speaks at The Spire affordable housing complex in the West End, August 13, 2021. (staff photo by James Cullum)

In addition to ARPA funding, Alexandria is getting some love from the federal coffers for several longtime local priorities.

Rep. Don Beyer (D-8th) announced last week that $5.4 million had been secured for ten infrastructure projects around Northern Virginia, all of which were in Beyer’s community project funding requests added to the omnibus spending bill.

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ALXnow’s top stories this week in Alexandria

By James Cullum

Published October 1, 2021 at 3:30PM | Updated October 1, 2021 at 4:01PM

It was a busy fall week in Alexandria. Here’s the rundown.

Our top story this week was on a plan to completely close off the 100 block of King Street as a pedestrian-only zone. The plan has been in the works since 2019, and was put into action last year. ALXnow’s poll on the subject had very one-sided results, showing 91% (791 votes) in favor of a permanent change.

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AlexRenew breaks ground for massive Old Town RiverRenew project

By Vernon Miles

Published September 30, 2021 at 3:30PM

Officials break ground at the RiverRenew project (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

The groundbreaking for AlexRenew’s RiverRenew Tunnel Project was about as Alexandria as events get. The event was a who’s-who of current and former officials, complete with bagpipes, a poem about local sewage presented by the Town Crier, and even a cartoon mascot representing the boring machine getting ready to drill the largest infrastructure project in the city’s history.

The smiles and enthusiasm from city and state officials and organizations like the Potomac Riverkeeper Network were a marked departure from the occasionally contentious process that led to the $454.4 million RiverRenew project. Plans include replacing Old Town’s combined sewer system with a new sewer structure that will prevent 120 million gallons of combined sewage from flowing into the Potomac River.

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Sewer repairs in South Old Town to start later this month

By Vernon Miles

Published August 17, 2021 at 3:30PM

Location of sewer repairs in South Old Town, via City of Alexandria

On the heels of rampant flooding across the city this weekend, the city is hosting a meeting later this week to discuss plans to fix a broken sewer pipeline in southern Old Town.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) the city is planning to host a meeting in the Lee Center (1108 Jefferson Street) from 7-9 p.m. to discuss the upcoming sewer pipe replacement. According to the city website, inspection of the sewer found that the pipe had been damaged and was causing residential sewer backups in the nearby area.

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Grant proposal could save Alexandrians’ sewer rate bill if approved on Monday

By Vernon Miles

Published July 30, 2021 at 2:15PM

AlexRenew headquarters (via Alexandria Renew Enterprises/Facebook)

A new state grant could help fund the city’s expensive, state-mandated RiverRenew project and offset some of the sewer rate increases for Alexandrians.

According to a press release, Alexandria Renew Enterprises (AlexRenew) — which runs the RiverRenew project — has been recommended to receive a $50 million grant to support construction on the project. The RiverRenew project is an overhaul of the city’s combined sewer system in Old Town that results in millions of gallons of sewage flowing into the Potomac River ever year.

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Silberberg addresses old defeats and new challenges in campaign to reclaim mayorship

By Vernon Miles

Published April 14, 2021 at 4:45PM

Former Mayor Allison Silberberg very publicly didn’t plan on running against Mayor Justin Wilson in the Democratic primary, but as weeks slipped by and no other challenger came forward — and Council Member Mo Seifeldein dropped out — Silberberg said she felt she needed to step up.

Three years after Silberberg lost her reelection bid to Wilson, she’s back to reclaim the position.

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What’s Next for Robinson Terminal North?

By Vernon Miles

Published November 23, 2020 at 2:45PM | Updated November 23, 2020 at 4:19PM

The old Robinson Terminal North, once the abrupt northern end to the Old Town waterfront, is no more.

Demolition was mostly wrapped up this weekend after a quick tear-down, and the plan is to make the location part of the broader effort to reform Old Town’s sewer system called the RiverRenew program.

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Utility Rate Increase Cut Down as Alexandria Residents Reel from COVID-19

By Vernon Miles

Published June 18, 2020 at 11:45AM | Updated June 18, 2020 at 5:58PM

(Updated 4:25 p.m.) Local wastewater management service Alexandria Renew Enterprises (AlexRenew) is still going to need that $370 to $555 million for the massive upcoming infrastructure project, but due to COVID-19 the organization is cutting down the planned utility rate increase.

“Recognizing the impact COVID-19 has had on the Alexandria community, AlexRenew has updated its previously planned budget, which included an 11% rate increase that was approved last year to support RiverRenew, a state-mandated program to address Alexandria’s combined sewer pollution,” AlexRenew said in a press release. “While an increase is still necessary to support the project, AlexRenew has reduced its rate increase to 6.6%, which will go into effect July 1.”

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National Park Service Clears Alexandria Sewer Project Assessment

By Vernon Miles

Published April 21, 2020 at 2:00PM

Map of planned RiverRenew project (image via National Park Service)

A global pandemic is not stopping forward progress on RiverRenew, a project that aims to overhaul the city’s sewer infrastructure that is annually dumps 11 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River.

The project is the largest infrastructure project in the city’s history, with a price tag that increased last year to an estimated $464 million. The project recently cleared its environmental assessment by the National Park Service that was required because portions of the project run through Jones Point Park, George Washington Memorial Parkway and the bed of the Potomac River.

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Alexandria’s Largest Infrastructure Project is Getting More Expensive

By Vernon Miles

Published December 12, 2019 at 10:30AM

As Alexandria’s Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) project RiverRenew starts making progress, it’s looking increasingly likely the project’s cost will approach the half-billion dollar mark.

During an update at the City Council meeting on Dec. 10 (Monday), Mayor Justin Wilson said the price will be towards the upper end of the $370 to $555 million price range.