December 5, 2000

MWRA Awards Two Contracts for Sewer System Upgrades in Quincy

MWRA's effort to improve sewer pumping facilities on the South Shore took a major step this fall as the board of directors signed off on the construction of two new wastewater pumping facilities in Quincy.

Both the Quincy Pumping Station located in Merrymount Park, and the Squantum Pump Station off of Huckins Avenue, will be replaced with new facilities as part of the Quincy Pump Facilities Project. The intent of the five-part project is to improve the MWRA sewer facilities that serve over 60,500 Quincy residents and many commercial, industrial and institutional establishments. The two new facilities will replace antiquated systems with updated pumping stations that have the correct flow capacity as well as odor control technology.

"All of us who support a clean and healthy Wollaston Beach and Quincy Bay, as well as anyone who has endured a sewage backup in their home or business, will welcome this announcement," said Doug Gutrow, vice chairman of Quincy Beaches and Coastal Commission and past president of the Ward Five Civic Association. "Many of us who have been following the progress of this project hoped we would be further along at this point. However, regardless of the timing, there is no arguing the benefits of upgrading the century-old systems. When completed, they will reduce sewage backups, improve flow, and ultimately decrease the amount that can seep into storm drains, many of which discharge along Wollaston Beach. It's good news for all Quincy residents."

The $6,538,642 contract for the Quincy Pumping Station was awarded to the lowest bidder, P. Gioioso & Sons, Inc. of Hyde Park, in October. The work should be completed in less than two years. The work will include the construction of a new brick facility in Merrymount Park, adjacent to the old building.

The existing Quincy Pumping Station was constructed in the 1890s, has been operating ever since, and has become too antiquated to handle the sewer demands of the Quincy residents it is currently serving. While it has the capacity to handle normal flows, wet weather has on occasion produced flows that exceed the station's limits. The new facility will better handle all flows.

According to MWRA Executive Director Douglas B. MacDonald, "The Quincy projects represent part of a series of improvements that we have undertaken to rebuild the South Sewer System. Although much remains to be done, the South System improvements including the new Braintree-Weymouth sewer tunnel, will help to end some of the overflows which have plagued residents for many years. These projects will also help continue progress made to restore the health of Boston Harbor, its tributaries and bays," said MacDonald.

When the new Quincy Pumping Station facility is finished, the old building will be re-landscaped to blend in with Merrymount Park. The new station will pump wastewater through recently rehabilitated sewer mains to MWRA's High Level Sewer that reaches the Nut Island Headworks facility. After leaving Nut Island the sewage travels though the Inter-Island Tunnel on its way to the Deer Island Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The Squantum Pump Station, a 1930s facility that serves 5,600 Quincy residents and several large commercial users, is undergoing very similar modifications and should also be completed in two years.

The first three parts of the overall Quincy Pump Facilities project, Squantum Pumping Station Force Main Rehabilitation, Quincy Pumping Station Force Main Rehabilitation, and Hough's Neck Pumping station, were recently completed.