LIVERMORE FALLS — Voters have approved more than $2 million in funding for a major Route 17 sewer infrastructure project.

Approval came during a special town meeting on Thursday, Nov. 13, at the VFW hall on Jewell Street. The hourlong discussion concluded with passage of the article, which authorizes borrowing up to $2.35 million for planning, engineering, design, permitting, construction and related improvements from Shuy Corner to the Main and Church streets intersection.

Town Manager Carrie Castonguay said the project falls under the authority of the Maine Department of Transportation, which will determine engineering, bidding and timelines. The town will apply for financing through the State Revolving Fund program, Castonguay said.

The town’s funding measure delegates borrowing and bond-issuance details to the Select Board chair and treasurer.

The issue has come to a head because of the condition of the sewer lines and an upcoming Maine Department of Transportation project on the road above the lines.

State officials plan a $15 million project to reconstruct a 1.1-mile section of road in 2026 starting at Shuy Corner, at the intersection of state routes 17 and 133, where the two merge for a short distance.

Video recordings of the interior of the sewer lines under the road show there are some 300-foot sections of the sewer main with as many as eight broken sections where the clay pipe was missing in part, with dirt visible, according to Mark Holt, sewer superintendent. Pipe collapse and failure is imminent. 

The project will reconstruct 1.1 miles of road and complete sewer work going up Depot Street to the intersection of High and Sewall streets and up Church Street to approximately Finley Funeral Home, Holt said previously. About 30 sewer manhole structures will be reconditioned or replaced on a case-by-case basis. About 85 sewer service lines will be replaced, he said.

The loan on the proposed $2.35 million bond will be over 30 years at an estimated 4% interest, with an estimated annual payment of $82,000.