Project Area
The project is located on SW Upper Drive, west of SW Upper Drive Place, north of SW Periander Street, and east of SW English Court.
General Schedule
Construction began the end of September 2024. Work will be complete by the end of this week.
What's Happening Now?
Sewer construction continues this week and is expected to be completed by October 10.
Crews have replaced 12-inch and 20-inch pipes through cured-in-place-pipe lining (CIPP). Also, maintenance holes in the area have been repaired. City contractor to focus on testing pipe through video surveillance. Upon completion, new pipes will be fully reinstated and reconnected to the public sewer system.
All work is weather-dependent and subject to change due to contractor availability.
Week of October 7:
Construction work will take place during day hours from Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the following location:
- Between SW Upper Drive and SW English Court – Crews to conduct additional testing and safety of replacement pipes. Once approval, crews to deconstruct and clean work zone: remove all temporary signs, building structures, fencing, tree protections, and restock gravel roadways.
The public should expect minor traffic delays and please obey all traffic control signage.
Extreme Weather
When high temperatures, extreme heat, near freezing temperatures, or extreme cold are in the weather forecast, crews may adjust schedules to protect workers from the dangers of heat stress and cold stress. When working in extreme weather environments, all City workers, contractors, and subcontractors must follow Oregon’s OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) mandates and Environmental Services’ Heat Illness Safety and Health Plan and its Cold Stress Safety and Health Plan.
You may see crews taking more frequent water and rest breaks, starting work as early as 6:00 a.m., stopping work at 12:00 p.m., and taking other protective measures during extreme weather.
What to Expect During Construction
Please see the brief guide below on what community can expect during on-going construction projects conducted by Environmental Services:
- A Safe Work Site:We want you to be safe around the work site. Please keep children, pets, bikes, cars, and trucks away from the tools, machines, supplies, and construction workers.
- Noise, Vibration, and Dust: Construction creates noise, vibration, and dust and disrupts normal neighborhood activity.
- Traffic Delays: The work will slow down traffic in your neighborhood. Please read the traffic signs and follow directions from the workers with flags.
- Access to Your Home or Business: You will be able to go to your home or business, but you may not be able to park as close as you would like. We will try to make sure driveways and parking lot entrances stay open.
- Parking Restrictions: We want you to be safe, so you might not be able to park your car next to workspaces, equipment, or materials. If crews are working directly in front of your home or a business, you may need to park in another place.
- Equipment Storage:Sometimes we will leave tools, machines, and supplies on your street overnight. Please stay away from them.
- Maintained Service: You can still use sewer, water, and other services while we work on your street.
- Work Hours: Work hours are 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. Sometimes we work on Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Schedule Changes and Inactivity: Our work schedules can change for many reasons like weather, traffic, and problems with tools, machines, or supplies. Sometimes we need to stop between different types of work and start again later.
We Want to Hear from You
Environmental Services would like to hear from you about special events, school activities, and community services in your neighborhood you think may be impacted by this project. Additionally, we want to know if you have any concerns related to accessibility, operations, deliveries, and night work. Your input will help us minimize the impact to your neighborhood during construction.
The following resources will help you stay informed and report concerns:
- Project Webpage: Visit portland.gov/bes/SWUpperDrive for project details.
- Questions: Call or email city staff stating that SW Upper Drive Sewer Repair Project is of your concern. Outreach staff will return your call or email by the next business day.
- Nighttime Construction Noise Complaint: Call the Noise Program hotline at 503-823-1338, stating SW Upper Drive Sewer Repair Project is your area of concern. The noise hotline is monitored by site inspectors.
- Sewer Emergency: In the event of a sewer backup or basement flooding, call the City Maintenance hotline immediately at 503-823-1700. It is staffed all hours and all days, 24/7.
- Other Southwest Projects: For a list and maps of other stormwater and sewer projects in these areas, please visit the webpage.
Sign Up for Project Updates
To receive email or text message updates for this project, we encourage you to sign up now. Updates provided through our free GovDelivery subscription service are the best way to stay informed about what’s happening and what to expect.
Project Background
The SW Upper Drive Repair Project is a part of Environmental Services' Small Diameter Large Scale Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Program (LSSRP - Small Diameter). This program conducts repairs and rehabilitation on sanitary and combined sewer collection systems at the scale of one or more neighborhoods. Both SW Upper Drive and the Goose Hollow Sewer Repair Projects are subsidiaries under the Goose Hollow - SW Upper Drive Sewer Rehabilitation Program.
This program focuses on the replacement and repair of aging public sewer pipes, storm drains, and maintenance holes in the Goose Hollow and the Southwest Hills Residential League neighborhoods. In 2022, the Goose Hollow Sewer Repair Project was completed and successfully repaired or replaced up to 16,000 linear feet, or three miles, of public sewers in the region.
Project Goals
The SW Upper Drive Sewer Repair Project will focus on the following stormwater and sewer lateral improvements:
- Replacement of existing 238-feet of 12-inch clay pipe and 221-feet of 20-inch clay pipe on or near private properties using CIPP thermal cure.
- Active sewer laterals will be relined to wye connections and those not plugged will be reinstated.
- Upsizing pre-existing maintenance holes in the area to 60-inch maintenance holes for safer and easier access to piping.
- Raising maintenance holes to the surface to access it to pull the CIPP liners through.
This project will help protect the health of the Willamette River Watershed.