Not long after she was elected, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin took a good look at her city’s sewer system and was appalled. Much of the system, which encompasses 264 sewersheds and more than 1,583 miles of sanitary sewer pipe, was approaching 100 years old, and years of neglect left it leaking and overburdened. Franklin promptly and proudly dubbed herself the “Sewer Mayor” and set out to change things. She created the Department of Watershed Management and gave it a broad mandate to create a best-in-class sewer system at the lowest possible cost.
Today, the City showcased the latest milestone in those efforts - the completion of the first 100 miles (528,000 linear feet) of sewer system rehabilitation. Before Mayor Franklin took office, less than 10 miles of sewer were being rehabilitated each year. Mayor Franklin reviewed the program and set a goal of completing 24 miles per year. The project has exceeded this goal averaging more than 30 miles per year - coming in ahead of schedule and under budget. The completion of this stage of the rehab project means that 1/16th of the City’s sanitary sewer system - 14 complete sewersheds - are 100 percent rehabilitated. The project was accomplished through a partnership with a Chesterfield, Mo.-based company, Insituform Technologies, Inc., using city personnel.
Under the contract, staff completed 65 total assignments, including work on 21 sewersheds, 18 emergency projects, three targeted trunk projects and 25 area projects.
The city celebrated the 100-mile accomplishment with a ceremony at Chastain Park featuring remarks from Councilmembers Clair Muller and Howard Shook. The event also included a demonstration of the Cured-In-Place Pipe rehabilitation process.
“We are justifiably proud of this work,” said Jack Ravan, Commissioner of the Department of Watershed Management. “With this milestone, we are on our way to fulfilling Mayor Franklin’s pledge of a ‘world-class’ sewer system.”
Although Mayor Franklin was unable to attend the ceremony, she issued her congratulations on the achievement, saying, "Our commitment to the community is to accelerate this process and this is a good indication that we are on the right track. Insituform Technologies, Inc., in partnership with our employees, has come in ahead of schedule and under budget, helping us toward our goal of creating a best-in-class sewer system at the lowest possible cost."
“This is a significant achievement in the Mayor’s Operation Clean Sewer Program,” said Gerald Addington, Insituform’s Area Vice President based in Atlanta. Addington continued, “Mayor Franklin should be commended for her leadership in putting Atlanta in the forefront in dealing with these needs. This type of infrastructure improvement provides an improved environment and better quality of life for all of Atlanta’s citizens, while boosting local business and employment.”
Along with the rehabilitation project, the City is expanding capacity in 10 major sewer trunk lines, constructing the Nancy Creek tunnel for storage of sanitary sewer overflows, and instituting a comprehensive grease management program. A sewer cleaning project is under way as well.
Additional Media Contact: Marilyn Johnson, Citizen Participation Program Office (404) 330-6755
Photos available upon request.
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