Progress continues to be made on the federally mandated sewer separation projects in Chicopee. After 3 years of intensive construction, the Hampden Street, Cochran Street, Baystate Road, and Clarendon Avenue area projects will all come to an end this Summer. The completion of these projects marks a major milestone, with over 75% of combined sewer overflow having been abated since 2006, at a cost of nearly 210 million dollars.

Even with steady advancement, several complex projects remain to be completed in the coming decades, including areas of Fairview and the Downtown. Through ongoing communication with our Federal and State partners, Chicopee remains committed to the betterment of public health and compliance with the Clean Water Act.

This past January, the City announced the signing of the Seventh Modification to the City’s Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) EPA-Consent Decree. This Modification specifically calls for the following tasks to be completed:

• Baystate/Clarendon pipe work completion;
• A total of $7 million in CSO work that targets public health and sewer backups to be done over the next 6 years;
• Provides for a Sewer Backup Prevention Plan which the City Council recently approved; and
• A total of $1.5 million over 6 years to clean/clear existing main sewers.

For questions regarding CSOs and sewer separation, please contact Quinn Lonczak at 413-594-3585.

“Continuing to do the work in a manageable way is crucial to balancing the needs of our residents with the pressures on our ratepayers,” said Mayor Richard J. Kos.

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