Park Street in downtown Traverse City needed to be updated – the road, sidewalks, and like many places in Michigan, water and sewer infrastructure. 

“Michigan has an estimated $800 million annual gap in water and sewer infrastructure needs, compiled from decades of deferred maintenance and a lack of knowledge on the condition of our wastewater-related assets.” (fixmistate.org)

“Most wastewater facilities and infrastructure are buried, leading to lower priority of both funding and maintenance. The old cliché out of sight, out of mind is too often the approach to managing wastewater infrastructure.” (fixmistate.org)

According to estimates by the EPA, Michigan needs to invest more than $2 billion to fix and update stormwater and wastewater management infrastructure.

Thanks to the fortitude of the City of Traverse City to find funding, Team Elmer’s was called upon to help with the reconstruction of Park Street to upgrade the infrastructure to support a greater capacity.

To showcase just how old some of the sewer and water lines are under the ground, Team Elmer’s found an 80-year-old steel-wrapped wood water main pipe while excavating a crosswalk on Front Street. No, it wasn’t being used, though other municipalities aren’t as lucky. The fact that it was still intact shows how much work needs to be done to our infrastructure on a state and even national level. According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, Michigan has about $13.8 billion in drinking water infrastructure needs. 

The reconstruction of Park Street involved quite a bit of work: roadway and sidewalk removal, new storm manholes, electrical upgrades, new curb and gutter, brick pavers between curb and gutter, irrigation system, new asphalt, and new sidewalks. Team Elmer’s also constructed new raised pedestrian crosswalks on Front and Park Streets to help with traffic control. And, of course, to keep up the landscape aesthetic, Team Elmer’s and their partners planted trees along the street. 

The Park Street reconstruction project was a big upgrade for downtown Traverse City and another right step in revitalizing infrastructure in Michigan. 

By the Numbers

• Pavement & Sidewalk Removal: 3,149 square yards
• 4” Non-Reinforced Concrete: 3,993 square feet
• 9”-15” Reinforced Concrete: 298 square feet
• Sewer Line: 122 lineal feet
• HMA (271 leving, 271 top): 541 tons
• 8” Aggregate Base: 1,815 square yards
• PVC Conduit Type A: 1,710 lineal feet

Date Started: April 2017
Date Completed: June 2017
Self-Performed: 52%
Partners: MI Pavers and Walls, Topline Electric, Bella Concrete, Give ‘Em A Brake Safety, PK Contracting, Milarch Brothers