A City of Sarasota sewer force main project by the north Siesta bridge should be at least 90% completed, with only clean-up work remaining, before the May 20 deadline imposed by the Florida Department of Transportation, the project manager told The Sarasota News Leader late April 27.
Dave McAnaney, of the city’s consulting firm Stantec, said the new sewer force main already was in and all the connections had been completed. The sewage is flowing through the pipe, he added.
The project had roused concern among FDOT representatives in Sarasota, as they wanted to be certain it did not interfere with the planned June 5 start of the north bridge’s rehabilitation.
The force main was planned to go under the bay bottom, adjacent to the north Siesta bridge.
When a reporter told McAnaney April 27 that FDOT officials should be pleased with the progress of the project, he replied, “We always like to keep them happy.”
The City of Sarasota initiated the $224,000 project to replace a 40-year-old, cast-iron sewer force main, to prevent any possibility of leakage. Glenn Marzluf, general manager of the city’s Utilities Department, explained to the Siesta Key Association in January that this project would be the first of several the city planned to replace aging sewer infrastructure under bodies of water and along the tops of bridges.