Phase Two of Sewer Project Stalled

The future of North Kingstown sewer project hangs in limbo as town officials search for the location of a crucial pump station. According to Town Manager Michael Embury, the challenge has been finding a suitable location for a pump station that is necessary to complete phase two of the sewer project.

Phase two, a $9.2-million project approved by voters in 2010, spans from Dana Drive (near the West Bay Family YMCA) down to the Rhode Island State Police Wickford Barracks. Phase one, which includes Post Road from Dana Drive up to Camp Avenue and a portion of Camp Avenue, is expected to be completed early during the 2013 construction season.

Initially, the town was looking to locate the pump station at the Wickford Barracks. After months of no communication, the Rhode Island State Police notified the town that they were not interested in allowing an easement to place the station there. Since then, the town has started to pursue alternate locations.

The most promising of those locations could be across Post Road at Smith’s Castle – an historic site/museum and one of the oldest homes in the Rhode Island.

“I’d say right now it’s a 50/50 chance that the folks at Smith’s Castle will be agreeable to this,” said Embury. “We’ve talked to several other property owners in the area and for some there really is no room for a station of this size.”

In the event that the town can’t find a pump station, phase two may have to be scrapped. According to Embury, the town could shift gears and begin shifting the sewer project north. To do that, the town would need to go back to voters to approve the reappropriation of the $9.2 million in bonds.