Spire details upcoming pipe replacement project in LaFayette – Valley Times-News

At its meeting on Monday, LaFayette City Council heard from Spire Natural Gas about the upcoming pipe replacement project that will take place shortly in LaFayette.

The project consists of three phases that will take place across Alabama Avenue. A total of 3.72 miles of pipeline will be replaced and 79 customers will have their pipelines replaced.

Pipeline Management Manager Bryan Rotenberry said Spire hopes to start the project within the next week.

“Most of our work will be behind the curb and right away,” said Rotenberry.

According to Rotenberry, most of the pipes replaced are cast iron and have been in use since the 1930s or 1940s.

“These three phases will get the final cast iron,” said Rotenberry.

Spire will begin the project with Phase III, which will begin near Eastside Elementary and the cemetery. 4th Place SE, 1st Ave SE and Hill Street will also be included in the project.

The second phase includes 1st Street, 2nd Ave NW, Court Way NW, 1st Street SE and Court Place NW.

Phase I, which will be the final phase, runs along 431 and includes Ave A SE, 1st Street SE and 1st Place SE.

“It actually has an ALDOT permit that we are now receiving. Our goal is to have that permit until we move on to the other two phases, ”said Rotenberry.

Southeast Connections conducts sewer inspections prior to commencing work. Rotenberry said Southeast Connections should be in LaFayette this week for these inspections.

During the sewer inspection, Southeast Connection launches a camera in the city’s sewer pipes to check the depth of the pipes.

“It’s a huge cost, but it’s also a huge savings,” Rotenberry said. “We are very strict with our contractors when it comes to drilling pipes in the ground without realizing them. It is required that they recognize every utility we traverse. That limits damage and things we don’t know about. “

At the end of the project, the Spire will make sure a camera goes through the lines to make sure it hasn’t caused any damage.

Customer satisfaction is also important to Spire. Throughout the life of the project, Spire will have someone on site who will make sure everything goes according to plan and will be on site to answer questions from residents.

“We’re going to have someone actually here with the contractors doing the job all the time while they’re here,” said Rotenberry. “The first thing they do is hang this up [a door hanger with information about the project] at the customer’s door. You will actually knock on the door trying to contact each resident and tell them about the work that will go on. “

Once the project in the section is halfway through, Rotenberry said that Inspector Barry Butler, who will be in the area throughout the project completion, will go back through the community to provide an update on the project.

“Often times it will happen when we do our job and go from block to block. We have temporary asphalt in patches and maybe some seeds and hay over the farm restoration where we will come back and fix it on permanent status. We want to make sure that we don’t forget them when we are a few blocks away, ”said Rotensaid Berry. “We try to communicate with customers on a daily basis to make sure they are taken care of.”

Rotenberry said Spire’s goal is to replace the pipes before the city’s redevelopment project begins.

“That’s something we really want to do,” said Rotenberry. “There’s nothing worse than a freshly paved road that we can start making cuts on.”

Spire serves six different states, including Alabama and Mississippi. Overall, it is the third largest utility in the United States.

According to Rotenberry, Spire has more than 1.7 million customers and more than 32,000 miles of main pipeline. In Alabama, Spire serves 653,514 customers and has 13,576 installed Miles of the main pipeline.

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