NEWS RELEASE

HARTFORD -- Groundbreaking ceremonies were held on April 20 for a project that will significantly improve the quality of life of many residents of the Tower Avenue area in Hartford and improve the water quality of the Connecticut River.

“What project is better than this?” said Gina McCarthy, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. “We have a public health need; an environmental justice issue,” she said. “This project is Number One.”

The commissioner added, “This is just one small step in the effort to rebuild the infrastructure of the city and we will be there every step of the way.”

The storm sewers in the Tower Avenue area collect rainwater from street runoff and from the Tower Brook in Keney Park.  The sewer pipes run down Tower Avenue to Main Street, where they  connect to an MDC combined sewer.  During wet weather, the combined sewer system is overloaded, resulting in sewer backups, basement flooding along Tower Avenue and street flooding at Tower Avenue and Main Street.  Additionally, the increased flow in the combined sewer results in discharges of combined sewage into the Connecticut River.  During a severe rain storm as much as 2.6 million gallons of combined sewage can be discharged directly into the Connecticut River.  

The $7 million Tower Brook Storm Sewer project is a joint venture between the City of Hartford and the District, with funding provided by the DEP’s Clean Water Fund.  This project will help the Tower Avenue neighborhood by preventing basement backups and street flooding, as well as providing newly paved roadways.  This work will ultimately help protect the Connecticut River and the environment by reducing the amount of harmful combined sewer overflows.   

The project is scheduled to be completed in May 2007.    

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