TROY — The city is seeking bids to replace lead utility lines along seven blocks in three neighborhoods and for individual homes as it begins efforts to end water pollution.
“We’re in a positive position going forward,” Chris Wheland, the city’s public utilities superintendent, said on Friday.
The city has 13,000 homes that need to be checked to see if the water entering them may be contaminated by lead pipes. The city has allocated $3.1 million to deal with the crisis after several years withholding more than $516,000 in state funding without spending on replacing lead water pipes.
“I was furious that the half million dollars wasn’t spent. We must move forward. It’s finally out,” Republican City Council President Carmella Mantello said of the city that tendered the bids Thursday.
The entire council was concerned that Mayor Patrick Madden’s administration failed to address the issue when receiving the state grants.
“Why the delay? The sooner we find out, the sooner we can start replacing,” said 3rd District Council member Sue Steele, the council’s Democratic chair replace it as soon as possible.”
Lead pipes contaminate drinking water, which can be particularly unhealthy for children.
The city also wants to do work on three streets where it will undertake reconstruction this year. The streets are Fourth Street between Adams and Division streets in the South Central neighborhood, Fifth Avenue between 102nd and 104th streets in Lansingburgh, and State Street between River Street and Second Street in downtown.
Tender submissions are due April 28 at 2:00 p.m. at City Hall. Wheland said he wants to start work as soon as the contracts are awarded.
“I’d like to see the actual replacement program happen in late May or June,” Mantello said.
The city will launch a new campaign to try to get homeowners to report whether they have lead or copper plumbing, Wheland said.
Troy has an estimated 13,999 homes that may have lead piping. The city previously said it checked 3,800 homes for lead pipes and found 2,700 did not have lead pipes, but the other 1,100 did. It is believed that an estimated 20 to 30 percent of homes have lead pipes.
The city committed $2.6 million of its own funds to the $516,565 state grant to increase its lead pipe replacement program to $3.1 million. It is estimated that this covers the replacement of lead pipes in 300 to 350 homes.
“We will seek state and federal funding,” Mantello said of paying to upgrade additional homes.
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