Salem Street Area Utility Improvement Project
The Salem Street area neighborhood has some of the oldest water and sewer lines in Exeter. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2010, the Town established a water and sewer main rehabilitation program as part of its annual Capital Improvement Program (CIP). One example of a project completed through this program includes the water main improvements for Washington Street, which were approved in FY 2016 and construction completed in FY 2018. The water and sewer mains in the Salem Street area neighborhood require significant improvements on Forest, Hale, Locust, Oak, Park (partial), Salem, Wadleigh, Walnut, and Warren Streets. Some of the water mains in this neighborhood were identified as being undersized and in poor condition in the 2015 Water Asset Management Plan prepared for the Town by an independent consultant. In FY 2014 the drain lines were televised and found to be in good condition but many of the catch basins in poor condition and needing to be replaced. The sewers in the neighborhood are old clay pipes with joint separations and tree root intrusions, subject to occasional blockages that require jetting and cleaning by Town forces.
This project has been in the planning stage for several years and is listed in Exeter’s current FY 2020-2025 CIP. The project will replace approximately 5,600 feet of water mains, upgrading them from 4” and 6” to 6” and 8” mains, based on the hydraulic analysis. Approximately 2,825 feet of sewers will be replaced with PVC pipe sized to meet projected sewer flows in the area. Catch basins will be replaced, as needed, based on prior inspections and additional investigations to be completed in the spring of 2020.
To get started the project will require marking of existing utilities by the Town and private utility owners; marking of subsurface boring/probes by the project consultant, Hoyle, Tanner & Associates, Inc.; collection of physical features and topographic data by a licensed land surveyor; and collection of subsurface data by a qualified drilling company. The design will be completed in FY 2020 with construction planned in FY 2021 pending Town approval of the construction during the March 2021 Town vote.
Status Updates
12/19/22: Jamco will continue working on Park Street installing drainage pipe and structures. They are planning to pave Park Street by the end of this week. Crews will also be working on sidewalks on Salem and Oak Street.
12/12/22: This week Jamco will be continuing the drainage work along Park Street. In addition, they will be working on curbing and sidewalks as well as any necessary yard restoration work along Oak and Salem Streets.
12/5/22: Jamco will continue drainage construction on Park Street. Park Street from Epping Road to Jack’s Court, will remain closed to through traffic. Motorists are advised to use the northern section of Park Street to gain access through the project. Jamco will also have crews on Oak Street and Salem Street working on new granite curb and sidewalk construction.
11/18/22: Jamco will continue with water main construction on Park Street. Park Street will be closed to local traffic only. Detour signs and flaggers will guide motorists around the construction. Other crews will be grinding, grading, and paving Oak Street from Park Street to Salem Street and also Salem Street from Oak Street to the railroad tracks. Jamco will not be working on Thursday or Friday of next week in observance of Thanksgiving weekend.
11/14/2022: Jamco will begin the new watermain installation on Park Street starting Monday, November 14th. On Tuesday there will be a temporary water service shutdown for Park Street homes while Jamco installs a new gate valve. In addition, other crews will complete permanent water connections to homes on Salem Street and any other miscellaneous drainage work needing to be completed.
11/4/2022: Jamco will be making the connections from the new water main to the homes on Salem Street. Water main construction on Park Street will begin next week as well. Jamco will be grinding, grading and paving Oak, Forest, and Wadleigh Streets.
10/28/2022: Next week, Jamco will continue the work on Salem Street installing the new waterline and drainage improvements.
10/14/22: Next week Jamco’s crews will be focused on the water services and drainage work along Wadleigh, Oak and Forest streets. They will also be working on loaming and seeding in the areas where the new pavement has been installed.
10/7/22: Jamco will begin fine-grading Locust Ave, Walnut St, and Forest St (to the Oak St intersection) in preparation for paving. Paving is scheduled for Thursday and Friday on those streets. Other crews will be working on water connections from homes on Forest St (east) and Wadleigh St to the new watermain and continue installing various drainage structures and piping.
9/30/22: Jamco will complete miscellaneous drainage around the areas of Forest, Wadleigh and Oak Streets. The crew will also complete water main installation on Forest and Wadleigh Streets. On Locust Avenue and Forest Street (west of the Oak Street intersection) the pavement will be ground in preparation for future paving.
9/23/22: Jamco will finish making connections from the homes to the new water, complete misc. drainage work and begin to demobilize crews and equipment from Locust Avenue. Preparations for paving will begin with grinding the road and setting up for grading on Locust Avenue. Elsewhere on the project, Jamco will complete tying the temporary water into homes on Forest and Wadleigh Streets and continue to work on replacing drainage before starting construction of the new water main on those streets.
9/16/22: Jamco will be completing water service connections and drainage work on Locust Avenue and will work on disconnecting and picking up the temporary water pipe along the edges of the street. Jamco will also be working on installing new water main on Forest and Wadleigh Street.
9/9/22: Jamco will be making water service connections to individual homes and drainage improvements on Locust Ave. Additional crews will be making temporary water service connections on Forest and Wadleigh Streets before starting the replacement watermain construction in those streets.
9/6/22: Jamco will not be working on Monday in observance of the Labor Day holiday. The crews will resume work on Tuesday with construction activities occurring on Locust Ave and Forest Street areas. Jamco will complete installation of the new water line on Locust Street and will disinfect and pressure test the line before beginning to hook homes into the new line. Jamco’s other crew will be working in the Forest Street and Oak Street area installing new drainage and temporary water line.
8/25/22: Next week, Jamco will be grading and paving Walnut Street and Salem Street to the Oak Street intersection. Jamco’s second crew will continue to install water main on Locust Ave.
8/22/22: Jamco will continue work on Locust Avenue installing sewer service connections, the temporary water line and making the associated water connections to the homes. Once the temporary water and connections are complete, Jamco will begin installing the new water line on Locust Avenue. A second crew will continue working on making permanent water connections to the new water line on Walnut Street and Forest Street. Jamco is also preparing driveway aprons (the area where a home’s driveway meets the roadway pavement) on Warren and Hale Streets for paving, which is anticipated to begin Monday and be completed by Wednesday.
8/15/22: Jamco will continue working on the sewer main and service connections on Locust Avenue. Once complete with the sewer the crew will begin to install temporary water and making connections to homes on that street. Jamco will have a second crew working on the water main on Walnut Street and Forest Street making permanent connections.
8/5/22: Next week Jamco will continue sewer main installation and service connections on Locust Ave. Locust will be closed to thru traffic and Park will maintain the detour around it. Jamco will also continue the installation of watermain in the Walnut and Forest Street area. The crews will be working in the street in these areas and will be directly traffic as construction progresses. In time allows, crews may also start the setup of temporary water in the Wadleigh and Forest Streat area.
8/1/22: Jamco will have one crew continue sewer work on Locust Ave. Their second crew will finish setting up the temporary water system and start installing the new water main in the Walnut and Forest area.
7/21/22: Jamco will continue construction of the new sewer line on Locust Ave. Their second crew will begin installing the new water line on Walnut St (north) and Forest St as soon as they finish the temporary bypass water system in that area.
7/18/2022: Jamco will continue to install the sewer on Locust Avenue. Other crews will be installing temporary bypass water on Walnut Street (North) and Forest Street. Once that is complete crews will begin installation of new waterline in that area.
7/8/22: Jamco will begin installing the new sewer on Locust Avenue. The Town is implementing a street parking ban on Locust while the sewer and water construction takes place. Residents can park on Hale, Warren, and Park Streets during the temporary parking ban. Jamco will also have crews finishing water service connections to homes on Walnut Street (south) and will begin to install temporary bypass water on Walnut Street (north) and Forest Street.
In the area of Locust Street, the ground water table is high, which makes it necessary to pump ground water out to install the sewer line. Jamco has installed well points on Locust to draw the water down and is discharging it into nearby catch basins. In order for the excavated areas to be free of ground water, Jamco is using an insulated pump that will need to run continuously overnight. This insulated pump is being used in an effort to limit the noise impact to the neighborhood as they are quieter than normal pumps. These pumping efforts are anticipated to last a few weeks.
7/6/2022: Jamco will continue tying homes into the new watermain on Salem Street and Walnut Street. Crews will also continue working in the Hale Street and Warren Avenue area cleaning the edges of roads, raising manhole covers and paving driveway aprons.
6/24/2022: Jamco will be paving and restoring Warren Ave and Hale Street early next week. Crews will continue working on installing watermains and drainage systems on Walnut Street and Salem Street.
6/17/2022: Jamco Excavators will begin grinding the existing roadway on Hale Street and Warren Avenue on Tuesday, June 21st, in preparation for fine grading and paving. It is anticipated that the paving operation will last for four days and conclude on Friday. Jamco will also have a mainline water crew installing a new 6” waterline on Walnut Street.
6/9/22: Next week, Jamco will continue to work installing new watermain(s) in the Oak Street and Walnut Street area. There may be temporary disruption to traffic in the Oak Street area and motorists are advised to seek alternate routes. Jamco will also have crews testing watermains in the Warren Avenue and Hale Street areas and, once complete, will begin connecting homes to the new watermain.
6/3/2022: Jamco will have two waterline crews onsite next week. The first crew will be installing new 6” waterline on Oak Street and continuing onto Walnut Street and Salem Street. The second crew will begin installing 1” water services to homes on Hale Street & Warren Avenue. A detour around the neighborhood will be in place starting Monday, June 6th. Residents, buses, and emergency vehicles will be able to drive through as needed.
5/27/22: Next week Jamco will continue construction of the permanent waterline on Hale Street and will also be conducting pressure testing of the waterline on Warren Avenue. Jamco will also be analyzing water samples from the newly installed waterline on Warren Ave in preparation for making connections to homes. Jamco will also be working in the Walnut and Oak Street area making temporary water connections to homes. They hope to start construction of the new waterline in those areas late next week.
5/20/22: Next week Jamco will be connecting homes to the temporary water pipes on Oak Street and Walnut Street. Jamco will be installing new valves and piping on Park Street at Warren Avenue and Oak Street intersections. This work will require a shutdown of the existing water main which will cause some homes in those areas to be without water service for approximately 2-4 hours. Water main installation will begin on Warren Avenue and Oak Street once the new valves are installed. At the end of the week, temporary paving will take place on Oak Street.
5/13/22: Next week construction will continue on Hale & Warren with temporary water sampling on Monday. Once the testing is complete houses will begin to be connected to the temporary water bypass system. Currently it is anticipated that connected homes will be run off of the system starting May 23rd with prior coordination with the water department. In addition, work will continue on Oak and Walnut with the initial installation of temporary water as well as continued drainage construction.
5/9/22: This week, the construction crew will be starting to install temporary bypass water on Hale and Warren, then they will move onto Oak and Walnut to install temporary water. Jamco will also be working on drainage improvements on Walnut Street. Once the temporary water is installed, the crew will then start the installation of new water main on Warren.
4/22/22: Sewer main line construction will be wrapping up on Hale Street with the service connections crew working just behind them. As the crew wraps up Hale, construction will be continuing onto Warren Street. Jamco is also working on drainage improvements on the south end of Walnut Street.
4/15/22: Next week (4/18), sewer work will continue on Hale Street. The contractor is also installing the temporary water service in the area of Walnut and Oak Street for when they begin water main construction. Drainage construction will also take place on Oak Street. On Salem Street a construction crew will be working on spreading loam and seed in some of the areas that were disturbed during construction last season. Waste Management (WM) is aware for Trash and recycle pick-up to be completed regularly.
