Sewer line replacement program launched in Oak Park

By Lori Porter porter@theacorn.com

Triunfo Sanitation District (TSD), a public agency that provides sewer and wastewater services and potable and reclaimed water for portions of eastern Ventura County, is offering to assist Oak Park homeowners who may need to replace damaged sewer lines running from their dwellings to main sewer lines.

When sewer lines known as laterals are damaged or need replacement, it’s the homeowner’s responsibility.

Lateral replacements that run from homes to main sewer lines can cost more than $10,000, depending on the length and other factors.

Costs can be significantly reduced when a group of homeowners negotiates a contract, so TSD recently surveyed Oak Park homeowners to evaluate interest in a lateral replacement program. On July 26, TSD sent a letter and survey form, explaining the program to 1,000 Oak Park homeowners living in the community’s oldest tracts.

In dwellings 30 years and older, sewer pipelines can become damaged and eventually cause severe problems. Sewage removal malfunctions are frequently associated with tree roots.

The pipelines serving some of the homes built between 1955 and 1994 were constructed with a paper and tar product called Orangeburg (manufactured in Orangeburg, N.Y.).

Orangeburg was commonly used during the 1960s and ’70s because it was relatively inexpensive compared to metal-based products. Other sewer pipe materials, such as cast iron and vitrified clay were also used, so not all Oak Park homes have the Orangeburg piping.

Many of the laterals don’t need to be replaced. To evaluate the condition of lateral sewer lines, TSD is offering video scans of the laterals.

Small video cameras are fed into laterals and snaked to the main sewer line. The fee is $250. After completing the procedure, homeowners get a copy of a videotape that depicts their pipeline.

Using a group rate, TSD anticipates lower costs for those who need lateral replacements.

The TSD program expects to use one contractor to do all of the work. TSD will also offer homeowners a repayment option (a five-year, 6.07 percent loan to be added to and collected from the homeowner’s property tax).

So far, TSD has received survey responses from 30 homeown-ers expressing significant interest.

Mark Capron, a senior engineer at TSD, said 30 is enough to begin soliciting bids. Once TSD decides upon a quoted cost, it will send another letter to homeowners informing them of the exact fee for their lateral replacements.

TSD serves mostly neighborhoods that are relatively new (Lake Sherwood, Bell Canyon, North Ranch and portions of Oak Park) so the program is unprecedented.

For more information about the TSD lateral replacement program, please contact Mark Capron at (805) 658-4606 or via the Internet at www.triunfosanitationdistrict.com.