Pinellas County Utilities seeks public input on route for new wastewater force main

Pinellas County Utilities is holding an open house to discuss possible routes for a new wastewater force main that is being planned for the Seminole/Pinellas Park area. Residents and business owners can attend the open house any time between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 10, at Northside Christian School’s gymnasium, 7777 62nd Ave. N, St. Petersburg.

The redundant force main project is being planned to replace an aging 20-inch wastewater force main in the Seminole/Pinellas Park area. The existing main is more than 50 years old and has failed twice in the past five years.

The new force main will be approximately 3.4 to 4.5 miles long and will be routed from the pump station at the corner of Park and Seminole boulevards to the South Cross Bayou Water Reclamation Facility on 54th Avenue North.

The project also includes connections with the existing, parallel 36-inch force main, so all the flows can be routed to either pipeline should one be taken out of service for repairs or maintenance activity in the future.

The replacement is being done to protect public health, improve wastewater service reliability, improve operations and protect the environment. Construction is expected to begin in late 2017 and will be completed by mid-2019.