JEA’s Riverside project delayed until at least March

Posted on February 5, 2013 By Editor Neighborhood News

$3.69 million Water Main Improvement Project will bring better water pressure

By Steve DiMattia
Resident Community News

Some Riverside area residents who were hoping for improved water pressure to start the New Year will have to wait a little longer.
Jacksonville Electric Authority’s Water Main Improvement Project, which was originally scheduled to begin in January, has been delayed until at least March while awaiting the necessary permits and delivery of piping material, said Greg Corcoran, JEA Project Outreach Coordinator in an email correspondence.

Corcoran said JEA town meeting notices would be mailed via U.S. Postal Service to residents and businesses within the next 4 to 6 weeks.
The $3.69 million project will upgrade the pipe size of the water main from 6 to 8-inches or from 8 to 12-inches in areas along Riverside Avenue from Edison Street (Everbank) to King Street (St. Vincent’s Medical Center), and then along St. Johns Avenue to Avondale Circle (just before the Shoppes of Avondale). The entire project area will be milled and resurfaced upon completion. The work is scheduled for 210 days with a Fall 2013 completion date anticipated.

“The upgrade of the water line will greatly improve water reliability and upgrade the water pressure to our customers along the project route,” Corcoran said. “JEA has chosen to install the new water line with an installation method called ‘pipe bursting,’ which greatly reduces the duration of the installation and overall construction project. This method of construction also decreases the amount of excavation required for installation.”
JEA is attempting to minimize traffic and logistical issues for residents, businesses and commuters within the project area by working only 2 or 3 blocks at a time to reduce detours and adjusting the detour and water outage schedule to accommodate businesses. The water supply to St. Vincent’s will never be interrupted.

Most water outages and detours will take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays, but not all. The section along Riverside Avenue from Powell Place to Osceola Street will see detours and outages from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays, and Sundays from 4 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next Monday morning.

“This is due to constraints related to Maintenance of Traffic requirements from the Florida Department of Transportation and from medical offices on Riverside Avenue that require water for their operations during the day,” Corcoran explained.
Residents and businesses will be notified at least 48 hours in advance of any planned water outages via door hangers or other means and it is a contract requirement that every customer will be back in service at the end of each business day.

The idea of early morning work hours might bring shudders to residents who remember the extremely loud machinery used during the “pipe bursting” during the Avondale Town Center utilities work two years ago, but Corcoran made assurances this project uses much quieter equipment and not on a continuous basis.

Residents and businesses can contact JEA Project Outreach at 904-665-7500 or [email protected]. Project updates will be posted on the JEA website at construction.jea.com.