Below freezing temperatures didn’t keep Stanley residents away from the Maple Street Reconstruction Public Information meeting on January 20. The meeting, hosted by the city of Stanley, was …
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Below freezing temperatures didn’t keep Stanley residents away from the Maple Street Reconstruction Public Information meeting on January 20. The meeting, hosted by the city of Stanley, was attended by those living in areas affected by the Maple Street Reconstruction Project where they learned about the upcoming construction and its impact on water and sewer lines. Tyler Hastings, an engineer at CBS2, addressed the crowd and acknowledged the inconvenience of the construction. “I always tell people it’s going to be a huge inconvenience while the construction is going on, but our goal is to make it as inconvenient as possible,” said Hastings.
As he gave his presentation, Hastings explained that the purpose of the construction began with the Maple Street forced main accumulating material that has “significantly” reduced the pipe size. The project, which spans from Maple Street from Urquhart to McKnight Street and then south on McKnight Street, involves replacing the force main, sanitary sewer, water, and storm sewer lines. In some areas, the water main is also undersized. Driveway culverts will be replaced as needed and sidewalks, curb and gutter, and asphalt will be replaced along with trees also being removed as needed. The project will also tie in with the new water treatment facility construction with similar time construction. “All services will be replaced up to the right of way,” explained Hastings.
The project will be funded through the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), utilizing the Safe Water Drinking Loan Program for the water portion and the Clean Water Fund for the sewer portion.
At the meeting, residents were also informed about the planned construction schedule. The project is expected to go out for bids in March, with construction slated to begin in April or May 2025. The goal is to complete the project by October 2025, though Hastings noted the schedule could change depending on contractor availability and unforeseen challenges. “I’d like this project to get done in one year,” said Hastings. Henke added that a second layer of pavement will be added in 2026.
Hastings also explained potential temporary water disruptions, stating that there “may be” stretches where temporary 2-inch plastic pipes would connect to residents’ garden hose spigots while water mains are being worked on. While the water will be safe to use, it may be warm or contain small plastic particles from the drilling process. He explained that the water mains must undergo pressure testing and receive two safe samples 24 hours apart before any services can be connected. The sewer system, on the other hand, is air-tested at a low pressure before service is activated. He informed residents that there might be a brief interruption of service on the day their connection is made, but they will be notified in advance.
“Hopefully the longest you would be without water would be four hours max,” he said.
Residents raised various concerns, including Assistant Fire Chief Jody Halterman’s question about access to families with medical needs, and whether the lead lines from the city’s property line to homes would be replaced.
“What about the lead lines from the city property line to the house? Are those going to be replaced as part of the project?” Dave Jankoski, Stanley Historical Society President, asked mentioning that many of the homes are older and are probably lead and it’s a big issue these days. “It would be a shame to have to dig those up again.”
Hastings asked City Administrator Nicole Pilgrim if the City had completed its lead survey. Pilgrim confirmed that they had and answered, “We have no knowledge of any lead. Everything is unknown unless they told us.”
Hastings answered, “The city owns the water service to the curb stop which is what we are going to put at the right of way line. And then from the curb stop to the house is private responsibility.”
Hastings said that the City’s portion will be replaced if it is lead. They will let the homeowners know if they have a lead service and then, “It will be the homeowner’s responsibility to replace the lead.”
Stanley resident Norm Christianson asked what the thickness of the road will be when they are done. Hastings mentioned that they haven’t received the soil borings back yet but, “We are thinking four inches of asphalt at least on Maple. The City expressed that it would like it to be an alternate truck route.”
Hastings confirmed that it will be two layers of blacktop and the second layer will be applied in 2026.
Henke explained, “Whenever we redo industrial, we’re going to have to put traffic somewhat on Maple.” He added that they are hoping to have 345th Street done, and the truck traffic can come in from the west. “We want to build this road in case we ever have to use it. Temporarily we may have to. We prefer not to.”
“It’s probably questionable how much that bridge can hold in terms of those big grade trucks if you ever have to do that,” commented Jankoski. Henke reiterated that they hope to have 345th done and “then that would take care of that.”
Finally, a resident asked about costs. “The bottom line is it won’t cost us any money, correct?”
“That is correct,” Henke confirmed. “No, there is no cost to the residents.”