County commissioners approve sewer line expansion on Bahia Vista Street

The Sarasota County Commission on Tuesday approved a budget amendment of $21.4 million for construction of a 24-inch parallel force main project along Bahia Vista Street as part of an overall water and sewer upgrade.

The project to improve wastewater collection flexibility and increased system capacity for wastewater transmission to the Bee Ridge Water Reclamation Facility will begin in approximately six to nine months. It will be funded by utility rates and Surtax 3 revenues, which are derived from an extra penny sales tax countywide.

The existing Bahia Vista Street force main provides critical north county wastewater transmission from the South Gate Master Pump Station to the Bee Ridge facility. The improvement project area is just east of McIntosh Road to the South Gate station.

It’s the latest addition to an overall utility expansion and improvement project that includes upgrading the Bee Ridge facility, which has a history of expelling nitrogen — the primary food source for red tide according to researchers — into waterways that empty into Sarasota Bay. County commissioners began a series of project funding approvals in December 2019. The current project cost is $280.17 million, slated for completion by February 2026.

Residents and businesses in the immediate area will be notified by postcard at least two weeks before the start of construction.

The force main construction contract with Forsberg Construction Inc. will focus initially on discovery and restoration where appropriate while long lead time items are ordered. An anticipated completion of the force main project is March 2024.

“We appreciate the community’s ongoing patience with this critical project,” said Sarasota County Public Utilities Director Mike Mylett. “Our focus remains on providing the best service to our customers, and this will help us continue that mission.”

In mid-2019, the commissioners gave direction to convert the Bee Ridge Water Reclamation Facility from producing Advanced Secondary Treatment for Public Access Reuse (reclaimed water) to Advanced Wastewater Treatment, and to proceed with the design and construction of the next incremental expansion of the plant from 12 million gallons per day to 18 million gallons.

The existing Bahia Vista Street force main was constructed in multiple phases during 2002-2006 to accommodate increased wastewater flow from several completed areas of the Phillippi Creek Septic System Replacement Program, decommissioning of the South Gate Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant, and planned developmental growth within the northern sanitary sewer collection basin. The force main is nearing capacity and an additional one is necessary to provide wastewater collection flexibility, transmission redundancy and increased system capacity.

While trenches are opened for the force main, the Public Utilities Department requested as part of the project inclusion of county fiber optic communication lines beginning at the South Gate station along the force main route. The conduits, connection vaults and other equipment will be constructed in the same open trench where possible, and drilled horizontal to the force main where necessary.