Virginia Tech, the Town of Blacksburg and the Blacksburg VPI Sanitation Authority are working collaboratively on two campus sewer projects this summer. The two projects will significantly improve and expand the area’s sanitation infrastructure.

Virginia Tech will oversee one of the two projects that calls for the installation of a new sanitary sewer line in an abandoned portion of the Virginia Tech Golf Course between Prices Fork Road and Duck Pond Drive. The new line will replace two existing lines that planners believe will not be adequate to handle the future sanitation needs of both the university and the Town of Blacksburg. Virginia Tech and the Town of Blacksburg each own one of the two lines that are being replaced and have entered into a joint agreement to complete the project.

This project is currently underway and is expected to be completed in October. The impact of this project on the surrounding area will be minimal because much of the project will be done during the construction of the new Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference Center.

The Blacksburg-VPI Sanitation Authority began work May 2 to upgrade and reroute the existing sewer line on the eastern side of campus. This project involved the installation of a new 24-inch sewer pipe along a route from the Donaldson Brown Hotel and Conference Center, along Kent Street and Drillfield Drive between the University Bookstore and Eggleston Hall to the Drillfield.

The project, which is scheduled to be completed by October, will require excavation and open cuts across Kent Street, Drillfield Drive and the Owens Dining and Donaldson Brown driveways. During the project, Kent Street may be closed for approximately two weeks and will be one lane for another three-to-four weeks. Traffic measures will be in place during construction, and traffic disturbances will be minimized by redirecting vehicles on the Drillfield to avoid closing the Drillfield, and maintaining pedestrian access along the route.

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