OCWA Completes Important Town of Camillus Water Project

OCWA recently completed improvements to its water transmission facilities at a busy intersection in the Town Camillus designed to streamline water flow and update system infrastructure.  The work involved the removal of outdated equipment and the replacement of a key flow control valve.

A pair of large underground flow control structures at the corner of Hinsdale Road and Milton Ave had reached the end of their useful lives.  The control structures were originally designed to maintain a safe and stable water supply under low water flow conditions, without discharging water from the nearby 10 million gallon Fairmount Reservoir.  As water system operational conditions changed over the years and this ability was no longer needed, the structures were taken out of service but left in place under Hinsdale Road.

To properly retire the structures, detailed planning went into the method to complete the work and the maintenance of traffic through this busy intersection.  Test shutdowns of the transmission mains supplying the area were conducted prior to the start of demolition.  Additionally, a critical 16” broken bypass valve which allowed OCWA’s 30” transmission main to remain in service during the work was replaced.  Reinforced concrete vault cover and components in each structure were removed, replaced with 20” and 24” straight pipe, and work areas were backfilled, compacted and paved.  Despite having a portion of the major water transmission system closed or diminished during construction, OCWA was able to maintain regular pressure and flows to its customers.

This was a major collaborative effort between OCWA’s Engineering Department, Distribution Maintenance Department, Distribution Operations Department and Otisco Water Treatment Plant, as well OCWA’s outside construction and maintenance contractor D.E. Tarolli, Inc. based in Warners, NY.