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Fitting up the last piece of the 84-inch outfall pipe (Oct 10, 2002)
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Monthly report — October 2002
Accelerated construction
Placement of steel and concrete moves at accelerated rate on new facilities.
Placement of steel and concrete for the facilities is
moving at an accelerated rate on the ammonia removal
and ultraviolet disinfection facilities. In October,
the contractor started work on the phosphorus removal
facilities as well with placement of slab on grade and
forming of the concrete tank walls. Approximately
13,000 cubic yards of concrete has been place by the
end of October of 27,000 cubic yards expected for
the whole project. Process piping for the Ammonia
removal facilities is being installed and work on the
secondary effluent pump station continued with
installation of the remainder of the base slabs and
placement of the concrete wet well walls.
Pre-construction and public availability meetings held on Brighton sewer separation.
A pre-construction meeting on this contract with C.O.
Falter for sewer separation in the area of Brighton,
Marguerite, Hunt and Bishop avenues was held on
October 17, 2002. In addition a public
availability-open house session was held Tuesday, October
22 at Elmwood School. Representatives of the County,
the contractor, Niagara Mohawk, the design consultant,
project construction managers and the City DPW were
present to provide information to interested residents
and respond to questions on the scope and schedule of
construction. A detailed letter was sent out to over
100 residents and property owners in the area to be
impacted by the sewer separation project prior to the
meeting.
Kirkpatrick project completed and operational.
The new wet weather pumps were operational since
September 8, 2002. During September and October, the
wet weather pumps were utilized for 100% of both dry
weather and wet weather flow. As of October 31, 2002,
the replacement pumps and screens for the pump station
have been operating as well. As reported in a letter
to DEC dated November 8, 2002, the project was
complete and fully operational prior to November 1,
2002 (the requested new major milestone date). Punch
list and other evaluation activities continue.
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Mayor Driscoll and County Executive Pirro describe benefits of the Leaf Bag Program, Oct 31
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Kick-off of fall leaf public education campaign.
A press conference was held on Thursday, October 31 by
the County Executive and the Mayor to kick off a new
program to help the lake and keep leaves out of the
sewers and treatment process facilities—Bag ’Em!
Held at the Eastwood Senior Center, the press
conference noted that paper leaf bags were available
free to City residents to bag their leaves. 10,000
bags were purchased through a Lake Partnership grant
from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the bags were
placed in libraries throughout the City as well as
youth and senior centers. The Urban Best Management
Practices campaign has proven extremely popular with
distribution sites calling for refills almost
immediately.
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Final preparations underway to pour concrete for a gallery in the phosphorus removal facility, Oct 10, 2002
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(ACJ Completion date for Ammonia Full Scale—11/3/03—schedule concerns)
(ACJ Completion date for Phosphorus Removal Stage II—4/1/05—on schedule)
Construction continues at accelerated pace
Placement of steel and concrete is moving at an
accelerated rate in the ammonia removal and UV
portions of the facilities. An acceleration schedule
was developed and implemented to attempt to recover
some of the time lost earlier in the construction
during site preparation contracts.
In October, the contractor began work on the
phosphorus removal facilities as well with placement
of concrete slab on grade and forming of concrete tank
walls. Work to tie-in the existing plant galleries
with the new facilities is also progressing as is yard
piping. This month, construction of the steam piping
to the new steam vault progressed and work on the
concrete walls for the UV disinfection facility also
was underway.
Electrical work continues
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New steam and condensate lines, Oct 17, 2002
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Installation of below slab conduits continued this
month at the BAF (Ammonia removal ) complex. Work was
also continued on the main electrical substation.
Dewatering continues
Dewatering (under contract 2D) is continuing and the
system has lowered ground water below the excavation of
all areas needed. It is anticipated that full scale
dewatering and treatment will be discontinued by the
end of 2002. Dewatering and ground water treatment for
miscellaneous trench excavations will be conducted on
an as needed basis.
Process equipment continues arriving
Process equipment from US Filter/Krüger continues
arriving regularly on site and is turned over to
general contractor for future installation.
HVAC work
Three new boilers have been set in the low lift pump
station boiler room. The contractor continues to
install the boiler connections and exhaust system.
Meetings held
The following meetings were held this month:
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Construction progress meeting were held weekly on Thursdays at 10 a.m.
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Weekly meetings held between construction manager (CDM/C&S), design engineer and the County.
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Modification review meetings held weekly.
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Scheduling meetings held weekly with all prime contractors.
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Special meetings were held this month on October 17th, with the general contractor (Pike) and union representatives concerning EEO and M/WBE issues.
This is the largest and most costly single project in
the Amended Consent Judgment program and will have the
greatest positive impacts on the water quality of
Onondaga Lake by removing more ammonia and phosphorus
from the Metro effluent discharge.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—requested milestone revision met 11/1/02)
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Final touches: planting and paving at Kirkpatrick Pump Station, Oct 29, 2002
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Facility fully operational.
As of October 31, 2002, the dry weather replacement
pumps and screens were operating. During September and
October, the new wet weather pumps were operational
since September 8 and were utilized for 100% of both
dry and wet weather flow.
A number of additional related activities were
completed during the month of October including:
completion of wiring and start up of pumps, completion
of installation of transducer for existing wet well,
relocation of existing water service, completion of
yard piping, relocation of existing floor drain
laterals, stucco application, roofing, landscaping and
site paving on facility.
Milestone revision requested
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New equipment at Kirkpatrick
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Because the project has expanded in scope since it was
originally conceived in the ACJ and unforeseen
hydrogeologic conditions impacted the construction
schedule, the County requested that the milestone be
extended from July 1, 2002 to November 1, 2002 by
which time the County anticipated the project would be
fully operational. Decision on revision request still
pending. A letter was forwarded to DEC on November 8,
2002, informing DEC that the facility was complete and
fully operational by the November 1, 2002 date.
A Notice of Intent to Award was sent to C.O. Falter on
October 9th for the $2.1 million sewer separation
project which will install new separate sanitary
sewers on portions of Brighton Avenue and Hunt,
Marguerite and Bishop avenues on the City's south
side.
A pre-construction meeting was held October 17th and a
public availability session was held at Elmwood School
on Tuesday October 22 as well as notices mailed out to
over 100 residents and property owners from both the
County and NiMo.
Niagara Mohawk began installation of a new gas main in
the area during October. Work up to and including a
portion of Brighton Avenue must be completed before the
County's contractor can begin work on the sewers.
Contacts with Niagara Mohawk were made throughout the
month and coordination meetings held as needed.
County construction is scheduled to start on this
project in November dependent on weather and NiMo's
progress. The entire project is estimated to be
completed in 6-9 months, weather dependent. New sewer
lines will be installed and existing combined lines
will be converted to storm water use only. Lead water
service lines encountered will be replaced by the
County. Much coordination will be necessary between
the County's contractor, NiMo, City Water, and other
utilities.
(ACJ Completion Date—7/1/02—Complete—January 2000)
Retrofitting a total of eight tanks was completed well
ahead of the required ACJ completion milestone. The
tanks are all fully operational with the new more
energy efficient and effective fine-bubble diffuser
aeration system. Lower ammonia levels reported in lake
corresponding with operation of new system.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete—ahead of schedule)
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete—December 2001—ahead of schedule)
New system in operation.
The new digital system is operational in all
locations. Certificate of Substantial completion was
submitted to NYSDEC. The contractor's warranty
continued through May 31, 2002.
(ACJ Completion date—7/1/02—Complete—December 2000—ahead of schedule)
Project completed. This project, which was designed to
reduce odors at the headworks of Metro adjacent to
Hiawatha Boulevard, is completed and in operation.
Positive comments have been received from the public
on a noticeable reduction in odors as a result of this
project.
Phosphorus removal pilot project (Metro)
(ACJ milestone date for completion of pilot—4/1/07 -
well ahead of schedule)
Final report in preparation.
The pilot was completed in December 2000. Currently
work continues on evaluation and analysis of data
compiled during the pilot operation which tested a
variety of phosphorus removal technologies. The County
is more than 6 years earlier than is called for in the
ACJ in carrying out this pilot project.
Status of ACJ Interim Projects
with completion dates of July 1, 2002* |
Evaluation of Siphon Crossings
Evaluated and rehabilitated
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Complete
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May 1999
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Hiawatha Regional Treatment Facility
Part A 30-inch CSO interceptor
Part B Regional Treatment and Storage Facility
Part C Underflow Force Main and Outfall pipeline
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Complete
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July 2001
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Newell Regional Treatment Facility
Disinfection Tested and Report filed
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Complete
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July 2001
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Teall Brook Floatables Control Facility
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Complete
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Dec 2001
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Evaluation of CSO Toxicity
Evaluated and report approved
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Complete
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May 2002
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Erie Boulevard Storage System Upgrade
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Complete
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June 2002
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Onondaga Creek Floatables Control Facility
Skimmer boat in operation summer ’02 under contract. Long-term control will include purchase of boat by County.
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Complete
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June 2002
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Harbor Brook Floatables Control Facility
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Complete
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July 2002
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Harbor Brook In-Water System**
Project changed, Facility Plan drafted
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Kirkpatrick Street Pump Station Upgrade**
Construction delays
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*As described in Appendix B pp. 10-12 of the ACJ—listed chronologically by date completed
**Milestone revision requested
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(ACJ Completion date—7/1/02—Complete June 2002 - Milestone met)
Construction completed, system operational. System is
fully operational. Project closeout activities
underway.
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Gate 1 of Erie Boulevard storage system improvements near Niagara Mohawk Building
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The project involved upgrading an existing large
diameter underground storm sewer previously
constructed to store combined sewage in storm
situations. Following a storm event, the combined flow
is released back to the sewer system for treatment at
Metro. The existing system had experienced operational
problems with control gates and was in need of
upgrading to function effectively. The project is now
complete and has successfully operated in storm
events.
(ACJ completion date—5/1/00—Complete—May 2000)
Facility in operation. This $4.7 m facility was
completed by its ACJ milestone date of May 1, 2000 and
is in operation. This is the largest floatables
facility currently planned by the County and removes
floatable debris from both the Burnet and Butternut
trunk sewers to prevent their discharge into Onondaga
Creek. Quarterly reports on their operation are filed
with DEC.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete—July 2002)
Construction complete. Construction was completed and
system is operational with three net bags in place.
County personnel have begun maintaining facility.
15-month performance period has started. Punch list
being worked on.
This project consists of a floating net-bag collection
system in the brook which includes 3 net bags to trap
floatables before they enter Onondaga Lake.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete July 2001 - ahead of schedule)
Construction completed and operational. Construction
of all major structures of this facility is complete.
The facility was operational by July 2001.
(ACJ completion date—5/1/99—Complete May 1999)
Facility fully operational. This is the first
floatables control facility completed under the
Onondaga Lake ACJ program. Quarterly operation and
maintenance reports are filed with DEC.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—pilot disinfection project completed)
Newell Street CSO investigated under Midland project.
Abatement of the Newell Street CSO is currently being
evaluated under the Midland Phase II and III design
contracts with EEA.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02 -Complete—June 2002)
Trash skimmer vessel in operation in harbor. The
County obtained the services of a private company, CNY
Aquatic Harvesting, to collect, remove and dispose of
floatable debris from the Inner Harbor beginning on
June 7. Coordinated operation with officials from the
Lakefront Development Corporation to coincide with the
scheduled events in the Harbor. The response of
officials and the public to the operation of the boat
and its ability to pick up the floatable debris and
improve the aesthetics of the harbor has been
extremely positive.
DEC reviewing skimmer vessel usage. In a letter dated
May 22, 2002 to DEC as per their request, the County
provided a detailed summary of the pilot project,
alternative solutions that were evaluated, and
information on the County's recommendation to use a
skimmer boat in conjunction with a boom in the Inner
Harbor to provide effective floatables containment and
collection. The letter concluded with a formal request
for approval from State DEC on the use of the boat
with or without booms as meeting the intent of the ACJ
requirement for control of CSO-derived floatables in
the harbor and Lake. The letter also contained a list
of additional benefits of selective placement and use
of booms in the harbor area. The information provided
in the letter and the report filed April 26th are
currently under review by DEC.
County looking into skimmer boat purchase for future
years. Work has begun on collecting information for
necessary authorizations and development of bid
specifications for purchase of a skimmer boat by the
County.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete—May 1999—Milestone met)
Work completed May 28, 1999 well ahead of schedule.
(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete—Milestone met)
Construction completed. Construction was completed on
this project in December 2001 and the facility is
operational. Project consists of an underground
floatables capture facility consisting of an automatic
screening device which directs floatables and
screenings to underflow sewer channel.
Completed
Former combined lines revised. One of two previous
combined lines in the Water Street area was relined and
now transports wastewater only. The other combined
line is now used for stormwater only.
Completion of this work has eliminated one additional
CSO on Onondaga Creek. From the start of the lake
improvement program, the County has reduced the number
of untreated CSOs from 66 to 57 which includes total
closure of 4 overflow points by sewer separation.
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Appearance of West Street after sewer separation project
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(ACJ completion date—7/1/02—Complete- December 1999—Milestone met)
This was the first sewer separation project conducted
under ACJ and eliminated 3 CSOs on Onondaga Creek by
converting them to stormwater discharge only.
(ACJ completion date—Phase II RTF—5/01/04 & Phase III Conveyance—5/01/07)
Workshop on disinfection held.
Working with its design engineers and consultants, the
County sponsored a workshop on disinfection on October
15, 2002. City, County and State officials and
interested citizens and groups were invited to take
part and share the latest information on disinfection.
Presentations were given by EPA, DEC, Syracuse
Research, Moffa/Brown Caldwell and representatives of
other municipalities. About 20 people attended.
Design work on hold.
Design engineers completed the 95% design documents
for Phase II of the project which includes the RTF and
1000´ of conveyance to the facility and plans which
were transmitted to the State DEC on December 3, 2001.
The County will not finalize the documents to 100%
until the County and City are able to reach agreement
and/or the Federal Court orders transfer of the needed
City property to the County or takes other action
which resolve the issue.
No resolution or agreement achieved to date on facility.
Design engineer prepared and delivered to the County
supplemental copies of the geotechnical reports and
Data on the Phase II portion of the Midland project.
Design documents due.
Design documents are being finalized following
internal review for the additional ten areas in the
City of Syracuse proposed for sewer separation under
the ACJ. Funding for this design effort is through the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Design documents for the
Brighton Avenue and the Water Street projects were
completed under this contract and finalized earlier so
that projects could be moved along for construction.
(ACJ dates—Commence construction of conveyances and RTF—May 1, 2003
Completion of conveyances 5/1/07 and RTF 1/1/12)
Environmental review activities for facility plan and
environmental information document continued on areas
common to preferred sites and traffic engineering
consultation work continued to be compiled. In
addition, the remaining subsurface borings were
scheduled for the three preferential sites.
The goal of the Clinton project is to address the
abatement of ten CSOs between Fayette and Adams
Streets to be served by a Clinton Area Facility
located near downtown Syracuse. The Facilities Plan
evaluates alternative technologies to address the
overflows and alternative sites for a
storage-treatment facility. The current contract with
EEA also covers preparation of an Environmental Impact
Assessment and conceptual design.
(ACJ completion date - 7/1/02 - Revision requested)
Milestone revision requested. In a letter dated June
5, 2002 to DEC, the County provided a summary of the
history and status of this project with a milestone
revision request. The letter requested that all the
ACJ parties agree to a stipulated modification of the
ACJ that removed the in-water demonstration project
from the ACJ and established a new minor milestone
date of July 1, 2003 for submittal to DEC of a final
Facility Plan. This letter was follow up to the
County's presentation on the project given at the ACJ
All-parties meeting held on May 23.
At All-Parties meeting held on July 26, this project
and the need for a milestone revision was discussed.
The draft Facilities Plan issued in March 2002 by the
County indicates that the County cannot proceed with
implementation of the in-water system due to the
extent and type of contamination present in the area
and the fact that the contamination is on-going. As
the County has indicated previously to the ACJ parties
at previous all-parties' meetings, the County feels
these concerns make the project not technically
feasible at this time; therefore a milestone revision
is necessary.
The draft facility plan, which was released in March
2002 outlines and evaluates alternative technologies
including the in-water system for abating and treating
the 18 CSOs which release into Harbor Brook and
identifies potential sites for CSO abatement
facilities. The County will proceed with public
participation activities with interested residents and
organizations in the Harbor Brook area and could
finalize the Facility Plan with a recommended
alternative over the next year.
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Scientist samples water from a tributary of Onondaga Lake (file photo)
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Bi-weekly tributary sampling events were conducted
October 8 and 17th. The event on the 17th qualified as
a high flow event. With this event, the County has
completed its required five high flow tributary
sampling events for the year. Appropriate notification
was provided to DEC and ASLF prior to sampling dates.
Sampling in the South Deep area was conducted on
October 2, 15, 24 and 29. These dates covered fall
turnover sampling. Appropriate notification was
provided to DEC and ASLF prior to sampling dates.
None to report.
During October, juvenile seining events were conducted
on October 7, 9 and 10. This completes 7 of the
required 8 such sampling events. Gill netting was
conducted October 1, 3 and 4. During the month, staff
began sorting the larval fish samples previously
obtained.
During October, staff completed sorting the forty
tributary screen samples. On October 14th, the samples
were shipped to Aquatic Resources Center in College
Grove Tennessee for identification.
None to report this month.
Initiated a contract with the U.S. Department of the
Interior for the cooperative funding for the operation
and maintenance of eleven gaging stations and one lake
gage station. County contribution is up to $72,290.
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County Executive Pirro initiates the effort to keep leaves out of sewers and treatment plants, Oct 31, 2002
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The public educational campaign to encourage the use
of paper leaf bags to decrease the amount of leaves
getting into the sewer system was kicked off this
month with a press conference on October 31st with the
County Executive and the Mayor participating. The
entire program involves the purchase and distribution
of over 10,000 bags which were received in October.
Distribution sites were identified and included all
branch libraries in the City and youth and senior
centers. Ads and flyers developed and published and
contacts with appropriate agencies including City DPW
made.
The response of the public has been enthusiastic
and bags stuffed with leaves are appearing throughout
the City on curbs and being taken for composting by
City DPW. Information on the campaign was also posted
on the County and Lake Improvement web sites.
In addition to the newly purchased bags, the County
made stickers for placement on formerly "Grass Only"
bags that the City had leftover from a previous
effort. We recycled the bags for use with the leaf
campaign to respond to the overwhelming demand for
more bags.
C.O. Falter Construction Corp.
Contract with C.O. Falter Construction Corp. for
general construction on Sewer Separation—CSOs 053
and 054. Contract amount: $2,167,851. Executed
10/22/02.
CDM/C&S.
Contract with CDM/C&S for project management services.
Contract amendment amount: $90,000. Executed 10/10/02.
No change orders executed this month.
Action items of the County legislature in the month of October:
No action taken.
Action items for the October legislative committee:
No items presented.
Upcoming for November committees:
No action items to be presented.
State Bond Act funds
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Driving casings under force mains Sept 30, 2002
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Payments received this month from State Bond Act Funds:
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Harbor Brook FCF—Request #6 for $9,075.20, request #7 for $8,100.17 and request #8 for $150,805.07 for an aggregate total of $345,780.00 on 10/1/02.
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Kirkpatrick Street Pump Station- Request #17 for $1,056,848.58 and request #18 for $310,232.76 for an aggregate total of $6,752,071.14 on 10/1/02.
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Onondaga Creek FCF—request #7 for $8,720.37 for an aggregate total of $343,407.21 on 10/1/02.
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Teall Brook FCF—request #11 for $23,937.33 for an aggregate total of $934,783.27 on 10/1/02.
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Total received to date in State Bond Act funds—$32,727,551.
Federal EPA funds
Payments received this month from Federal EPA Funds:
None to Report.
Total received to date in Federal EPA Funds—$16,286,189.
Federal Army Corps of Engineers Funds
Payments received this month from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers:
None to report.
Total received to date from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Funds—$663,876.
The following reimbursement payments were received from EFC during the month of October:
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Ammonia/Phosphorus Removal—Request #31 for $789,995.46 and request #32 for $1,166,017.71 for aggregate total of $53,341,000 on 10/11/02 (This is the total amount of this first loan.)
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Ammonia/Phosphorus Removal—request #1 for $1,579,538.16 and request #2 for $641,259.64 for aggregate total on this second loan of $2,220,797.80. Total for both loans: $55,561,797.80.
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Kirkpatrick Street Pump Station—request #21 for $527,467.04 and request #22 fro $429,754.70 for aggregate total of $10,174,801.61 on 10/28/02.
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Erie Boulevard—Request #13 for $30,401.35 and request #14 for $19,053.27 for aggregate total of $1,986,321.03 on 10/28/02.
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Total reimbursement monies received to date through EFC Loans for the funded ACJ projects: $90,746,503 (short term), $7,677,996 (long term).
Quarterly All-parties meeting—November 7, 2002
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Completion of interim projects—July 1, 2002
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Site acquisition for the Midland Project-Phase II—revised from April 1, 2002 to October 1, 2002. (revision requested)
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Submit engineering report for Clinton project—revised to November 1, 2002.(revision requested)
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Susan Miller, Project Deputy Director
Onondaga County Dept of Water Environment Protection