The special assembly of the city council of Astoria is increasing in the drains
Published 9:00 a.m. Sunday, August 31, 2025
City tours of water projects
Astoria's city council held a special meeting on Monday, in which they visited two large infrastructure projects all over the city.
The 16th Street Waterline replacement project and the project to improve wastewater systems are designed in such a way that the structure of the city is redesigned.
During the two -hour tour, city councilors and parishioners learned the history of the projects and current updates.
Waterline replacement project
The 16th Street Waterline replacement project started in July and is one month before the schedule, said Project Engineer John Edwards.
“We expect a significant degree of project (with the new waterline on duty) towards the end of October 2025, with some of the surface work that may be final in November,” said Edwards. “At this point it is about a month before the starting plan and the contract requirements.”
The new polyethylene tube with high density is expected to take at least 100 years.
“In 1915, the wooden pipe was replaced by the cast iron pipes, which until about three weeks ago War-es was on duty for 110 years,” said Edwards. “It did his job. The typical lifespan for this type of pipe is 50 years – if you are lucky.”
Edwards said they have been working on this project since 2021.
The Waterline replacement project received $ 2.79 million in 2022.
The construction of phase 2 began at the beginning of 2025. The new pipe was pulled through the tunnel on August 19.
“The current status numbers of the entire current budget of 3,677,247 US dollars – that is almost 900,000 more than the original costs,” said Edwards.
The final date of the site is planned for December 31.
Sewage
Since 2012, the city has determined plans to create a system to prevent solids from accumulating in the Astoria abrasive treatment. “We have been planning this project for some time,” said Cindy Moore, Assistant City Engineer.
The plant consists of three water lagons.
Twelve years later, the city of Big River Construction, a local company, gave to break the project to improve wastewater treatment plants.
This project of around $ 10 million will include a two-channel screening system and deliver new flow measurements, said Moore.
“Everything that has come through the system … that means that there are dirt, gravel and all sorts of things that could go into the system to rinse their toilet into the lagoons,” said Moore. “So this system (everything) is captured by the screening facility; there are three channels.”
As soon as the fixed material has been recorded via the system, it is collected in dummy containers that are pulled out regularly.
The project also enables more movements of biosolids and microorganisms.
“The other thing that we do as part of these efforts is to bring all biosolides of two and three (cells) into one … so we basically put everything we have in one and keep it there,” said Moore. “The reason why we don't take it out and pull it off is that it is very expensive to do this (and) that it is disturbing for the community to bring out a few trucks here.”
A joint member who joined the special meeting asked Moore whether the project takes into account the future population growth. Moore said it did.
Another member asked if the new screening system would catch plastics and rubble, which Moore replied with a “yes”.
Frank Kemp with the Astoria Riverfront Trolley Association said that he took part in the special meeting because he wanted to collect information about the projects for the trolley operators who will finally forward the information to the public.
The project is expected to be completed in autumn 2026.