The installation of a sanitary sewer force main beneath East Porter Ave. between South Calumet Road and Ind. 49 could be done in the next seven to 10 days and the road opened to traffic.

But it won’t matter all that much because then the whole of the intersection of South Calumet Road and Porter Ave. will be closed as crews dig up the roadway there to link the force main to existing infrastructure west of the intersection.

Chesterton Town Engineer Mark O’Dell told the Chesterton Tribune after Monday night’s meeting of the Utility Service Board that the intersection will probably only be closed for three or four days. But it will be closed completely both to north/south and east/west traffic, he said, and motorists will need to find alternative routes.

Meanwhile, the upgrade of the Dickinson Road lift station—of which the installation of the new force main is one component—is going well, O’Dell told the Service Board on Monday. Members did vote 4-0 to authorize the release to the Lake Erie Land Company of $672,034.50 in a sewer district fund to make a first payment to the general contractor, Woodruff & Sons of Michigan City. Lake Erie Land is responsible for the entire cost of the upgrade.

Member Scot McCord was not in attendance.

In other business, Town of Porter Public Works Director Brenda Brueckheimer told the Service Board that cleaning and videotaping of the Downtown sanitary sewer system is ongoing. Crews are encountering some serious roots, she said, and are taking the opportunity while they’re at it to help residents unclog their laterals.

The crews are also finding illegally tied-in sump pumps—12 of them so far—and storm drains—two of them. As these are disconnected and a general grip gotten on the infiltration problem, Brueckheimer said, the Town of Porter will continue to reduce its flow to the wastewater treatment plant.

Meanwhile, members voted 4-0 to endorse a 2010 budget which includes a pretty gloomy projection of a year’s end deficit of $179,759.

That budget—premised on the expectation of a roughly 2-percent increase in commercial sales—projects total revenue of $3,419,020, less total capital improvements and debt service of $1,117,313; total revenues for operations of $2,301,707; and total operations and maintenance expense of $2,481,466, for a net deficit of $179,759.

Killing the Utility is a shortfall in commercial sales and tap-on fees—mostly the result of the faltering economy—in combination with significant increases in the cost of health insurance, purchased power, and chemicals.

“People maybe don’t realize it when they pay their rates that health care is so expensive and something we have no control over,” Member Andy Michel said.

Health care is projected to cost the Utility $386,286 this year—or 15 percent of its total operations expenses—and $395,000 next year.

In August Chesterton used 49.22 percent of its 3,572,000 gallon per day (gpd) allotment at the wastewater treatment plant; Porter, 54.50 percent of its 767,000 gpd allotment; the Indian Boundary Conservancy District, 61.81 percent of its 81,000 gpd allotment; and the plant as a whole, 50.33 percent of its capacity.

There was one bypass recorded last month, a nominal one of 500 gallons which occurred on Aug. 19 when power was lost at the plant briefly due to the tornado. A total of 4.04 inches of rain was recorded last month at the plant.

In August the Utility ran a deficit of $205,713 and in the year-to-date is running a deficit of $256,622.

Posted 9/22/2009