Harward Sewer and Pump Station Upgrade

What is happening in the wooded area behind Washington Street and Barque Road and the Winship Green? The leveled area has been increased and graded recently. We have seen cars and motorcycles driving on the dirt road there. Many people believe it is town land and is a new walking path. It is our understanding it is private property. Please let us know what the current status of this property is and what the intentions for this property are.

cbstanto, Crooker will be moving that porta potty today to a more isolated location. They will inquire with the provider for additional services during their weekly cleaning/pumping.

Is it possible to ask Crooker to move their porta potty at the Dike Newell school to the opposite side of the parking lot (and ideally empty it more frequently)? We live next to the lot and it now smells like raw sewage as soon as we step outside, or if we leave the windows open. With the heat wave this week, I can only imagine it’s going to get worse, and it’s pretty rough right now.

I know it’s impossible not to ruffle some neighbors feathers with these types of projects, so we’ve been trying to be pretty understanding with some of the other stuff, but the smell is really making it unpleasant to be at our house.

JD, we hope to have the main entrance to Winship Green off of Winship St. open on most days around early July. However, there will be intermittent closings of Winship St. to finish some of the lateral work throughout the summer. The detour through Barque Rd. will not be advertised during the times when Winship Street is open this summer
The Barque Rd entrance to Winship Green will have to stay available until Winship Street and the corridor restoration work is complete. We are anticipating that this happens in the fall.

Any update on when the main entrance to Winship Green will open and Barque Rd cut-through will close?

Jennifer, I have discussed this with the RPR on site and it will also be addressed during a meeting tomorrow with the project manager.

233667 Any chance Crooker drivers can be asked to slow down and stop overfilling their dump trucks? Signed Suffering on High Street

TJJackson, We expect an approximate 2 week closure of Winship Street.

How long can we expect the Winship Street Closure to last after it goes into effect on May 18th?

JD, I expect that this pump will be needed from now and through the first week of May. It will be shut down as soon as possible.

Sorry about error on previous question-I meant the pump between Washington and Barque. The pump has been going 24/7 for a week now and I’m wondering how much longer it will be in use and in that particular location.

Any sense of when the crews will be done with the temporary pump set up on the section between Washington and Harward?

Concerned Resident, thank you for reaching out. There are several questions to answer so I'll list them and answer each below.

I am hearing/seeing work being done well before 7am. Is there a city ordinance or contract details related to a start time for construction work on this project?
-Actual work (heavy equipment digging, loading dump trucks, etc.) is not supposed to start before 7am. This has been relayed to the contractor again so I would expect this to be resolved. Please let me know if it continues.

Is blasting still happening? I heard several extremely loud and jarring explosions/quakes on 4/21/2026 and 4/22/2026 that shook my house.
- Blasting on that end (Office Drive) continues on. They plan to be complete by 4/27, barring any unforeseen events.

Is there a way to mitigate the damage to Meadow Way and Office Drive that is happening from large earthworks vehicles traveling on rubber road streets? Additionally, is there a way to reduce the massive amount of dirt in the roads and air associated with this project?
-There will be some repaving on Office Drive at the end of the year. The contractor will now be sweeping the roads heavily used daily.

When will construction vehicles stop traveling on Meadow Way and Office drive associated with this project?
-I expect that there will be a slowing of activity around the beginning of May. After blasting this week, they will be removing the broken ledge rock off site and trucking in suitable fill. After that, we don't expect any more major activity in that area until August/September when they start installing the pipe. That schedule can change based on weather and other variables. There is an update every month under the "News feed" tab on this page.

Is there a way to provide an alternative entrance to the pathway construction fencing is blocking by Varnum field?
-You can walk around that fence in the daytime, it is setup to go across the construction road at night and is not meant to block the walking path. The contractor has been informed to set the fence to block the road each night. When they are not using the construction road during the day, that fence will be completely out of the way of the walking path.

I am hearing/seeing work being done well before 7am. Is there a city ordinance or contract details related to a start time for construction work on this project?

Is blasting still happening? I heard several extremely loud and jarring explosions/quakes on 4/21/2026 and 4/22/2026 that shook my house.

Is there a way to mitigate the damage to Meadow Way and Office Drive that is happening from large earthworks vehicles traveling on rubber road streets? Additionally, is there a way to reduce the massive amount of dirt in the roads and air associated with this project?

When will construction vehicles stop traveling on Meadow Way and Office drive associated with this project?

Is there a way to provide an alternative entrance to the pathway construction fencing is blocking by Varnum field?

Cbstanto, that area is being used as a staging area for Crooker Construction who were awarded the contract. This project is due to be wrapped up around April of 2027. The activity at that site will vary throughout that time period, as more sewer line and road work gets completed.

Is the plan to use the old Dike Newell school parking lot as a construction site/to house materials for the entirety of the project? Our property abuts the school lot, and we weren't expecting to be living at a construction site, since we actually live south of the entire zone that was outlined as being impacted by this project. We're in full support of this project, but definitely curious when the use of the parking lot will wrap up if you're able to share any rough timelines :)

JD, the goal was to have the blasting in that stretch completed by the end of this week (3/27). But due to saturated conditions and the ledge profile in the drilling area, the blasting of that corridor will continue this following week and is anticipated to be completed before the end of next week (4/3).

Is there any date by when the blasting on the stretch between Washington and Winship will be completed?

Jeff, it’s likely going to be 2-3 weeks. Weather events could cause some delays. However, there will be times when it is open outside of working hours as often as possible.

How long will Washington be blocked for? This information has not been readily available in any of the communications that I’ve been able to find. Thank you.