April 21, 2008: The Westchester County Department of Health was onsite April 16, 2008 to witness the official start-up of the Kirby Lane North pump station. The pump station performed flawlessly and we were given approval to officially put the pump station into use. The pump station is in automatic mode and the system is ready to accept effluent. Residents should be receiving (if not already) a notice from the City informing you of the completion of the sewer system along with instructions regarding your sewer connection. Now that better weather is here to stay, ELQ will be starting restoration of areas within the right-of-way that were disturbed during the construction phase. If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

April 4, 2008: Con Ed has completed all the work related to supplying power to the Kirby Lane North pump station. ELQ has completed work on the pump station except for the fence enclosure. The fence enclosure should be going up next week. The size of the fence enclosure will be increased approximately four feet in length to accommodate the future separate diesel fuel tank. ELQ has been testing the pumps and the generator and both are working as expected. Once the station is outfitted with the alarm system (should be installed next week) and the fence enclosure, we will contact Westchester County Department of Health (WCDOH) to set up the official start-up testing of the pump station. WCDOH will be onsite to witness this test. Once WCDOH has signed off on the pump station and all the paperwork is in place, the system is ready for use. It is anticipated that the new sewer system will be ready for use in mid-to-late April 2008. As stated in the previous update, Susan Fasnacht has retired from Chas. H. Sells, so all design and Water Quality Study related questions or comments should be addressed to David Weiss of Chas. H. Sells (914-747-1120). If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914-582-8603).

February 29, 2008: Con Ed is nearing their completion of the 3 phase electric service to the Pump Station. They anticipate completing the work next week (weather permitting). Please note that rain will prevent them from working on the electric service. The Contractor (ELQ) has completed work on the pump station that includes items that do not require electric service. ELQ has approximately 3 weeks left of electrical work. ELQ plans to have the pump station operational and ready for testing after completion of the remaining electrical work. Con Ed’s and ELQ’s work can for the most part be done concurrently. This puts the mechanical and electrical completion of the pump station in late March. Once the pump station is mechanically/electrically operational (in approximately 3 weeks), we can then proceed with the preliminary testing and setup of the alarms/telemetry. This pump station is equipped with a state-of-the-art phone based telemetry system that dials call centers in the event of an emergency. After the alarms/telemetry are setup and functioning properly, we will go through the preliminary testing phase to correct any bugs or make any adjustments. Once we are confident that the pump station is functioning to Westchester County Health Department (WCDOH) standards, we will contact WCDOH to setup the official start-up testing of the pump station. WCDOH will be onsite to witness this test. Once WCDOH has signed off on the pump station and all the paperwork is in place, the system is ready for use. It is anticipated that the new sewer system will be ready for use in mid-to-late April. As stated in the previous update, Susan Fasnacht has retired from Chas. H. Sells, so all design and Water Quality Study related questions or comments should be addressed to David Weiss of Chas. H. Sells (914) 747-1120. If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

February 6, 2008: Con Ed is still working on the 3 phase electric service to the Pump Station. ConEd has installed the 2nd pole and is currently working on the overhead wires. They anticipate completing work in a week (weather permitting). Please note that rain will prevent them from working on the electric service. ELQ is working on the pump station and completing items that do not require electric service (weather permitting), however, most of the pump equipment installation requires the 3 phase electric service for set up and testing. Once the 3 phase electric service is complete, ELQ plans to have the pump station operational and ready for testing in approximately 5 weeks. This puts completion of the pump station in mid March (5 weeks + 1 week for Con Ed to complete the 3 phase service). Susan Fasnacht has retired from Chas. H. Sells. CONGRATULATIONS and best wishes Susan! All design and Water Quality Study related questions or comments should be addressed to David Weiss of Chas. H. Sells. (914) 747-1120. David is still in touch with Susan so the transition will be seamless. The City of Rye has submitted a letter and the Chas H. Sells report on water quality testing to the Environmental Facilities Corp., requesting a review of the report and our funding score in the hopes that a revised score will meet the EFC's funding threshold. 

January 23, 2008: Con Ed is still working on the 3 phase electric service to the Pump Station. ConEd’s auger machine used to drill a hole in the rock for the new pole broke down while drilling the hole for the 2nd pole. They do not have a second machine available that can finish augering the hole through the rock. The machine is being repaired and they are trying to obtain an independent contractor to complete the hole for the pole. This will cause a delay in the completion of the pump station by a few weeks depending on how long it takes ConEd to complete the 3 phase service. Sells will continue to stay in touch with ConEd and provide an update on their progress. Once they complete the hole for the 2nd pole, we will be able to better estimate the completion date. ELQ will be working on the pump station and completing items that do not require electric service (weather permitting), however, most of the pump equipment installation requires the 3 phase electric service for set up and testing.

January 14, 2008: ELQ, the contractor, completed the installation of the drainage basin and pipe on the East side of Kirby Lane North, just above the Pump Station. Con Ed is continuing work on the 3 phase electric service to the Pump Station. They have installed 1 of 2 new poles. ELQ has installed an electrical feed from the new Con Ed pole to the pump station.

January 3, 2008: Some residents have expressed concern that the water collecting on one resident's property property and along the side of the road is coming from the new water main rather than ground water and runoff. United Water has been out to the site and has run sounding tests of the main. The tests did not show any evidence of a leak in the water main. ELQ will be installing a new drain pipe from the low area by the property in question as a replacement of the one that had run under Kirby Lane North and was removed due to interferences with the new utilities. The new pipe is similar in size and location as the one removed. We will continue to monitor the situation to see if this returns the conditions to those of pre-construction. Eli Castro is on-site and will observe what is happening in that area and along the road. To date the following work items have been completed on schedule: 1) water main installation including approval for use by the County Health Department, and it is in service; 2) gas main installation and it too is in service. (note - these two separate utilities were coordinated and installed in the same trench simultaneously to reduce the construction duration); 3) sewer main installation, and 4) raising the road profile and paving initial paving courses. (The top course of asphalt will be placed in the spring to allow the roadway to settle during the winter.) Work to be completed includes finishing the pump station so that the sewer system can be put into service, restoration items (seeding, repairing damaged driveways, curbs, walks, etc.), and final paving. The status of the pump station work is that the wet wells have been installed and connected to the sewer main. ELQ is working on the installation of the pumps, controller, and emergency generator, and expects to have the pump station ready for testing in mid to late February. This is dependent upon a few items: installation of the 3-phase power service by Con Ed (that is slated to be done by the end of January) and weather (hopefully there won’t be any big storms). Once ELQ has completed the pump station it has to have an initial test and then have an official test witnessed by the County Health Department. Assuming no issues, we could expect to have preliminary approval from the Health Department to put the system into service in mid-March. The pump station fell behind schedule for two reasons: 1) A request, during construction by the residents of Kirby Lane North, to change the orientation of the pump station, which required a new survey and land acquisition. The original orientation was presented to the residents in public meetings during the design phase, but no objections were raised at that time, and 2) Con Ed did not start work on extending the 3-phase electric service to the pump station until late December. Three-phase electric service is required to run heavy pumps such as the ones used at the Pump Station.

January 2, 2008: Happy New Year! ELQ has completed the connection between the sewer main and the wet wells (Pump Station).Con Ed is currently providing 3 phase electric service to the Pump Station which is required to run heavy pumping equipment. This includes 2 new Utility poles. Con Ed estimates they will complete the work by the end of January. Once Con Ed finishes, ELQ, the contractor, will run a feed from the new pole to the pump station and hook up the pumps. ELQ, the contractor, is installing a drainage basin and pipe on the East side of Kirby Lane North, just above the Pump Station, to replace a drain pipe that was removed do to interference with the New Utilities. This work should be completed by Friday 1/4/07.

November 2, 2007: The County Health Department has granted approval of the water main installation and will allow it to be put into service. ELQ has raised the elevation of the low point of Kirby Lane North and pave the entire road with a base course of asphalt. The top or final paving course will not be installed until after the winter. This will give the base course of asphalt a chance to settle over the winter and eliminate cracking in the final asphalt course. The top or final course of asphalt has been placed on Grace Church Street. Work on the pump station has started. The basins or wet wells have been installed and ELQ is currently working on the connection between the sewer main and the wet wells. After the wet wells are connected to the sewer main, the mechanical equipment will be installed.

October 19, 2007: The Westchester County Health Department has advised Chas H. Sells Inc that the County is granting approval of the water main installation and allowing it to be put into service. United Water was also advised and will be able to release the paperwork for the individual homeowners' applications for connection to the water main. Chas H. Sells anticipates that connections will be allowed to the new water main on or before October 26; will follow up with the County, and advise residents as to the status with United Water. Chas H. Sells is beginning  to get back some preliminary information on the water quality tests and it appears that there may be some supporting data for the EFC funding application. For additional information concerning the water main connections or water quality testing, please contact Susan K. Fasnacht, P.E., Vice President,  Chas. H. Sells, Inc., sfasnacht@chashsells.com, TEL: (914) 747-1120, FAX: (914) 747-1956.

October 3, 2007: The water main has passed all tests required by the County Health Department and the as-built drawings are currently being prepared by Chas H. Sells. Once complete (within the next week), the drawings will be forwarded to the County Health Department along with the test results so the County can approve the main for water distribution. ELQ is scheduled to return to the work site next week to start final work on Kirby Lane North. ELQ will raise the elevation of the low point in the road and pave the entire road with a base course of asphalt. The top or final paving course will not be installed until after the winter. This will give the base course of asphalt a chance to settle over the winter and eliminate cracking in the final asphalt course. Work on the pump station will start in approximately four weeks. ELQ is waiting for delivery of the precast concrete holding tanks and mechanical equipment for the pump station. If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603. In an effort to obtain NYS Environmental Facilities Corp. financing, the City has engaged Chas H. Sells to perform water quality testing on Kirby Lane North for the twelve homes currently on private well water and selected standing bodies of water (ponds, wetlands, etc.). Testing is also available for homes on municipal water that also have private well water for non-potable uses, such as irrigation. Sells will be hand-delivering letters to homeowners concerning this matter. There are two versions of the letter: one for the private well users, and one for those on municipal water. Homeowners are asked to contact Chas H. Sells by Monday, October 8, 2007 so that as many homes as possible can be tested. Sells will use a unique code to identify the source of the water samples so that the information remains confidential. Sells will provide a copy of the test results to the property owners.

August 29, 2007: Joken, the contractor for United Water and Con Ed, has completed the water and gas main installation. A pressure test was conducted Thursday, August 23, 2007. The water main passed the pressure test and it was flushed and disinfected. A water sample was collected Tuesday, August 28, 2007 by United Water and sent to the laboratory for testing. A second water sample will be collected Thursday, August 30, 2007. If both samples pass the laboratory tests, work can begin on the lateral installation from the main to the property lines. After Joken finishes installing the laterals, ELQ will return to start restoring and paving the road with a base course of asphalt. Please allow a week for ELQ to remobilize after Joken finishes. ELQ will also start work on the new pump station once they remobilize. If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

August 17, 2007: Joken, the contractor for United Water and Con Ed, anticipates completing the water and gas main installation early next week and will begin testing the water main by the end of next week. Once the testing is finished and the test results are accepted by the County Health Department, Joken will start installing the gas and water laterals to the property lines. After Joken finishes installing the laterals, ELQ will return to start restoring and paving the road with a base course of asphalt. Please allow a week for ELQ to remobilize after Joken finishes. ELQ will also start work on the new pump station once they remobilize. If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

July 25, 2007: Joken (United Water and Con Ed’s contractor) will be starting work on the water and gas main installation on Monday July 30th. The City required both water and gas to be installed at the same time in the same trench to minimize disruption to the community. Coordinating two separate utility companies is difficult and coordinating to separate utility companies to install service simultaneously in the same trench is extremely difficult. However, the coordination is now complete. Once Joken starts with the water and gas main installation, ELQ will return to start work on the sewer pump station. After the water and gas mains are installed, ELQ will pave the road with a base course of asphalt. The top or final paving course will not be installed until after the winter. This will give the base course of asphalt a chance to settle over the winter and eliminate cracking in the final asphalt course. Chas. H. Sells has been retained by United Water to inspect the water main installation and certify the work to Westchester County Department of Health. If you have any questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

July 20, 2007: Chas. H. Sells spoke today with Dan Covino of Joken, who advised that Joken plans on starting the installation work for the water and gas mains on Monday, July 30, 2007. Joken will meet Con Ed this afternoon at the site to determine where to stage materials. Next week they will start delivering materials to the site. Joken expects the work will take about three weeks, Chas. H. Sells is also aware that the homeowners have been waiting for a quote from Joken for the service connections. Joken will put together an estimate for the service connections when they are on site doing the installation work. Chas. H. Sells has given ELQ a preliminary approval for the pump station, and had to send the new pump data to Westchester County for formal approval. Chas H. Sells expects a quick review and approval from the County, and will call the County early next week to follow up. At this time, ELQ can start ordering items and doing the work on the pump station.

July 12, 2007: The City of Rye is in receipt of a letter from the New York State Environmental Facilities Corp (EFC) confirming receipt of the Chas. H. Sells Inc. "Project Benefit Analysis" document. While the EFC increased the project score for funding by five (5) points, the total project score, even with the additional points, the project score of 31 is far below the most recent EFC "funding line", and it would appear that this project is not eligible for EFC financing at this time.

July 2, 2007: ELQ, the City’s contractor, has completed the blasting, excavation and installation of the sewer main. They have also completed the blasting, excavation and backfilling of the water/gas main trench. United Water of New Rochelle has given their contractor (Joken) permission to start the water main installation. The City has requested that ConEd work with Joken so that the gas main can be installed at the same time as the water main, and Joken is awaiting authorization from ConEd to start work on the gas main. ELQ will return to pave the road and install the sewer pump station after the water and gas mains are installed by Joken (see ELQ letter of June 28, 2007). Chas. H. Sells has been retained by United Water of New Rochelle to inspect the water main installation and certify the work to the Westchester County Department of Health. For questions regarding field issues, please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.  

June 11, 2007: ELQ, the City’s contractor, has completed the blasting, excavation and installation of the sewer main. Work on the pump station has not started. As part of ELQ’s contract with the City, they are responsible for blasting and excavating the blasted rock from the proposed water/gas trench. The blasting of the water/gas trench is 95% complete and they have started the excavation of the blasted rock from the water/gas trench. Since the water company, Untied Water of New Rochelle, has selected a different contractor (Joken) to install the water main, ELQ will not be installing the water main or gas main when they excavate the blasted rock from the water/gas trench. They will be backfilling it with clean item. ELQ expects to complete the water/gas trench rock excavation in 2 to 3 weeks, including the remaining blasting at the top of Kirby Lane North. Once this work is completed, United Water’s contractor, Joken, will come on site and excavate the water/gas trench to install the water main. The City has requested that ConEd work with Joken so the gas main can be installed at the same time as the water main. A utility coordination meeting was held at City Hall on Tuesday, June 5, 2007. Minutes of the meeting have been posted on the web site. If you have any questions please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

May 25, 2007: The blaster anticipates blasting Tuesday next week (Tuesday 5/29/07) between 10am and 2pm.

May 23, 2007: The blaster anticipates blasting Thursday and Friday this week (Thursday 5/24/07 though Friday 5/25/07) between 10am and 2pm.

May 15, 2007: The contractor continued excavating the blasted rock in the sewer trench and installing the sewer main. No blasting is anticipated this week. Pending the depth of rock encountered at the end of Kirby Lane North, there may be some blasting next week. If you have any questions please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603. All claims, including damage to cars from the road and homes due to blasting, should be submitted directly to the contractor. Sells recommends you go through insurance and get an estimate for the repairs. This is the only way you can be sure that damage is documented and correctly repaired. The claims should be submitted to: ELQ, 567 Fifth Ave., New Rochelle, NY 10801, Attn: Matt Viviano, (914) 654-1040. Please note that Sells is not inspecting the blasting, a separate consultant has been hired directly by the City that specializes in Blasting Inspection. Although Sells is happy to assist you in any way they can, you should direct all questions/issues related to blasting to the Blasting Inspection Company. They were at the Blasting Meeting at the City Hall and their contact info is: DCIS Inc., Dominick Caratozzolo, (914) 522-5451 (cell).

May 1, 2007: The blaster anticipates blasting each day this week (Tuesday 5/1/07 though Friday 5/4/07) between 10am and 2pm. The New York operations of Aquarion Water Company are being taken over by United Water. Hopefully there will be no change in the deal with the residents. ELQ sent a project schedule revised as of April 27, 2007 indicating that the water main work should be able to start around the beginning of July. Con Ed is relatively set with the gas main work. Once we know more about the water, we will set up a meeting with the United Water, Con Ed, ELQ, the City and Chas H. Sells to discuss this aspect of the project.

April 24, 2007: The contractor continued blasting the water and gas trench last week. The contractor also continued excavating the blasted rock in the sewer trench and installed the sewer main. The blaster anticipates blasting Wednesday 4/25/07 between 10am and 2pm. If you have any questions please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

April 23, 2007: The blaster anticipates blasting, tomorrow, Tuesday 4/24/07 between 10am and 2pm. Notices will be hand delivered.

April 10, 2007: The contractor blasted the water and Gas trench April 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. Then weather and Good Friday prevented blasting April 5th and 6th. Monday 4/9/07 the contractor was working on the laterals and plans to blast more of the sewer trench Wednesday 4/11 through Friday 4/13 (weather permitting – Thursday may be rained out). Notices will continue to be hand delivered the day before each blast to keep you informed. If you have any questions please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

March 29, 2007: The blaster anticipates blasting Friday 3/30/07 and Monday 4/2/07 through Friday 4/6/07 between 10am and 2pm. Notices will be hand delivered.

March 26, 2007: The contractor started blasting last week. Generally he will be blasting between 10:00 am & 1:00pm so please expect road closures between those hours. Notices will be hand delivered the day before each blast to keep you informed. If you have any questions please contact Eli Castro at (914) 582-8603.

March 22, 2007: Blasting is scheduled for again for Friday (3/23/07) between 10:00am and 1:00pm. Notices will be hand delivered today. The road will be closed from approximately 10:00am to 1:00pm. Please make arrangements if you need to be out between those hours.

March 20, 2007:  The contractor has cleared snow from the side of the road and has started drilling. The blaster anticipates blasting Thursday 3/22/07 between 10am and 3pm. Notices will be hand delivered March 21, 2007.

March 19, 2007: Due to heavy snow and ice accumulation along the side of the road adjacent to the proposed trench blasting, blasting WILL NOT be occurring Tuesday, March 20, 2007. The contractor and City will be clearing snow from the side of the road, and Chas H. Sells Inc.will keep residents posted on updates to the blasting schedule.

March 15, 2007: We anticipate that the next blasting for the Kirby Lane North Sewer Project will take place on Tuesday, March 20, 2007, with the gap between blasting caused by the weather. Please remember that the blaster brings the blasting material to the site only on the day which he plans to blast, so his decision cannot be made at the last minute - he must rely on forecasts. Also please remember that the blaster stated in the neighborhood meeting held in January 2007 that he may cancel blasting if the air is heavy and damp, even if it is not raining.