New Sanitary Sewer Lift Station Planned at 2nd & Violet

Homeowners who live in the area of 2nd Street and Violet Avenue in McAllen will see some utility construction along their alley, in the next two to three months.

McAllen Public Utility is in the process of searching for a contractor to begin replacing a 40 year-old a sewer lift station there.

"A lift station is a low point in the gravity collection system," explains Tim Skoglund, a utility engineer with McAllen Public Utility. "Sewer flows downhill, the lift station then picks it up and puts it into another line."

Skoglund said the current sewer lift station at 2nd and Violet Avenue was built in the mid 70's and has been patched several times.

"In the case of 2nd and Violet here, we're collecting wastewater from the eastside of 2nd Street up toward McColl and then the lift station simply gives it a little bit more pressure and puts it into a trunk line that runs north on 2nd Street."

He said the construction should not be too much of a disruption to homeowners, pedestrians or cyclists on the 2nd Street Hike and Bike trail. The completed work should also reduce or eliminate odor complaints near the lift station.

"The new lift station is going to have a carbon odor system. We're going to ventilate the entire wet well, run it through a carbon scrubber and that's going to clean that air up and hopefully reduce it to a point where people will not notice it," Skoglund said.

For questions or comments about the upcoming utility construction at 2nd and Violet, contact the City of McAllen Utility Engineering Office at [phone].