Collection
Sewers
Sewer service pipes from your home, school, or business connect into the city owned and maintained sewer system. Property owners are responsible for the condition and operation of the service pipes on their property. We have provided some tips to help you maintain the condition of your sewer lines, which in turn also help the city avoid costly repairs to city sewer lines. See the link "What You Can Do."
The city has over 240 miles of sewer mains in service throughout the city. These lines carry sewage to the city's wastewater treatment plant. Sewer pipe diameters range from 8 inches to 60 inches.
There are over 5,000 manholes located throughout the city. These manholes link into the sewer system and are a place where sewage pumps are installed.
Lift Stations
A lift station is a pump or pump station. Sewers flow by gravity down a slope. When the sewer becomes too deep it flows into a manhole where there are pumps, which "lift" the sewage to a higher level. It then continues to flow by gravity toward the treatment plant.
There are 16 city-owned lift stations located throughout the city.
Maintenance
Our maintenance goal is to clean & remove debris from pipes every 5 years for pipes that are 8 inch, 10 inch, 12 inch, and 15 inch in diameter. The city employs dedicated personnel with flushing equipment to work toward this goal.