Major Lakewood road reopens following months-long sewer repair
An emergency sewer failure below one of Lakewood’s major roads has been repaired after months of work.
The county announced that Steilacoom Boulevard is open between Lakewood Drive and Gravelly Lake Drive following $2.5 million of work.
“Given the emergency nature of this work at a high-volume traffic location, our primary focus was to address the pipe failure as quickly as possible,” county spokesperson Akiko Oda said.
A sewer main pipe collapsed due to structural failure beneath Steilacoom Boulevard on July 20, spilling sewage onto nearby streets. The collapse pushed up work initially scheduled for this summer that would have replaced a manhole and that portion of the sewer line, Oda said.
The public was forced to detour around the one-block closure.
Pierce County Planning & Public Works created a bypass system before beginning the permanent repair in October, Oda said.
County crews dug more than 25 feet to reach the sewer line and replaced about 500 feet of the existing 36-inch diameter pipe. The replacement is expected to last about 75 years, Oda said.
While the road was closed, the county also replaced the water main lines and coordinated with Puget Sound Energy to work on its gas lines.
The street reopened Feb. 16 with permanent road markings and final utility work to be installed next month, Oda said.
This story was originally published February 23, 2022 at 2:33 PM.
