Elkhart progressing with second phase of wastewater storage facility
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
Elkhart officials and community partners gathered this week to celebrate the Oakland Phase B Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) project, billed as the city’s largest-ever public infrastructure investment.
With a total investment projected at $90 million over four phases, the initiative is expected to greatly reduce sewage overflows into the St. Joseph River while enhancing livability through new recreational infrastructure.
“So when the wet weather mixes with the sewage during rain events and then overwhelms our system, all that extra flow goes out to the river historically,” Tory Irwin, Elkhart’s director of public works, said. “We’ve been installing infrastructure like this to reduce and eliminate those overflows of sewage into the river.”
Funded through water and sewer rates and general fund dollars, the $37 million Oakland Phase B portion includes a 1.7-million-gallon storage tank.
The project will increase the city’s sewage storage capacity to 6 million gallons across five tanks and includes the addition of a bike path connecting neighborhoods to downtown and the regional Pumpkinvine Trail.
“We need to have our waterways clean. We need to be able to utilize them for livability,” Elkhart Mayor Rod Roberson said. “Where our two rivers come together is really the center of our city. So the livability of a project below ground and above ground is so important to what we do.”
Roberson talks about the intersection of infrastructure and quality of place.
Emphasizing the transformation of the river so far, Daragh Deegan, water quality manager for the city, recalled a time when the river was considered an “eyesore,” with homes built facing away from it. Now, the river is considered an asset and homes by the river are some of the most expensive in Elkhart.
The St. Joseph and Elkhart rivers were essentially used to dump industrial waste pre-1950s, making it unsafe for aquatic life.
Deegan said that a study by the Indiana State Board of Health at the time found extremely low oxygen levels and 20 million e-coli colonies in the water sample, when the current standard is 125 colonies per sample.
“In the 1950s, Elkhart installed its wastewater treatment plant and Mishawaka South Bend did the same thing. As a result, the river started to rebound” Deegan said. “The Clean Water Act was implemented that went further to stop industries from dumping their waste into the St. Joe and Elkhart rivers, and as a result our river got even cleaner.”
Now the rivers support 87 fish species, including two endangered species, seven crayfish species, seven turtle species, 18 freshwater mussel species, dozens of frogs, snakes and birds, including bald eagles and ospreys. Residents can also sight muskrats, beavers and even river otters.
“These combined sewers are a big part of how our community can benefit the river by reducing the amount of combined sewage overflows that we have in the river,” Deegan added.
The full CSO project began in 2022 and is scheduled for completion in 2027. Upon completion, it will include about 10 miles of new sewer pipe stretching from downtown to the wastewater treatment plant and five total storage tanks.
The Oakland CSO project is not only a major infrastructure investment but also a critical step toward compliance with federal mandates under the Clean Water Act. Like many older cities, Elkhart has long relied on a combined sewer system, where stormwater and sewage share the same pipes.
During heavy rainfall, these systems can overflow, discharging untreated sewage into local waterways, a violation of environmental standards. In response, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has required municipalities nationwide to reduce or eliminate CSOs through long-term control plans.
While full elimination of CSOs is not always required, the EPA mandates cities like Elkhart to implement long-term plans that reduce overflow frequency and volume to protect water quality. Elkhart’s $90 million multi-phase project aligns with these requirements and demonstrates the city’s commitment to protecting public health and the St. Joseph River ecosystem.
Church Community Services granted easements to help route the new bike path. The new trail will enhance access from Napanee Street to the River District and connect Elkhart to neighboring communities via the Pumpkinvine Trail.
“These projects go unseen, but they are not unimportant,” Roberson said. “We will continue to build Elkhart even through some of the challenges that we are looking forward to moving forward.”