Alcosan to provide updates on overhaul
Firm will outline water management upgrade
The $2 billion plan to overhaul the county’s treatment of stormwater runoff, which has already sparked a lawsuit by McKees Rocks residents near a proposed work site, will be the subject of public meetings held by the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority on Wednesday.
Alcosan’s spokesperson Joseph Vallarian referred to a statement on its website that the board will discuss amendments to its Act 537 plan, “the Authority’s first steps in constructing new infrastructure as part of its Regional Tunnel System.”
Pennsylvania’s Act 537 requires municipalities to adequately provide wastewater management, and make amendments for major projects.
Alcosan had previously revised the plan in 2020, when it announced it would reroute polluted stormwater from the Monongahela River across the city’s Uptown, Lower Hill, and Strip District neighborhoods through underground tunnels.
Extending further under the Allegheny River, the rerouted stormwater would link with a tunnel along the Ohio River and travel to Alcosan’s treatment facility in Woods Run.
At the time, Mr. Vallarian told the Post-Gazette the changes to the plan first introduced in 1996 would improve system efficiency, reduce costs and promised the construction of the tunnels deep below ground would not disrupt the lives of local residents.
As the project develops, some community members have spoken out against Alcosan for proposing a launch site in McKees Rocks, where it would begin the boring process for a section of the tunnel system.
Steve Engel, a South Side-based lawyer, is representing the borough of McKees Rocks after they announced a lawsuit in 2021.
The lawsuit claimed the launch site, proposed at West Carson Street and Chartiers Avenue, would deter business in the area, make pedestrian access to stores difficult, and violate zoning ordinances.
On Tuesday, Mr. Vallarian did not say whether McKees Rocks would be the location for the site, adding that Alcosan was “early in the design process for the Ohio River Tunnel.”
Mr. Engel told the Post-Gazette on Tuesday that Alcosan had since filed a motion to dismiss McKees Rocks’ lawsuit, and that he was waiting on a court to rule on it.
He added that the borough and Alcosan have held discussions to find a solution that satisfies both groups.
Mr. Engel said he was hopeful the parties could reach an agreement, acknowledging that changes to the stormwater system needed to be made.
“Here you have a small little town saying, ‘Hey, wait,’ ” Mr. Engel said on the challenges for McKees Rocks, an area where 33% of residents live below the federal poverty line, and revitalization of its commercial district has been a decadeslong endeavor.
“[Alcosan] filed their motion to dismiss, obviously that’s a challenge,” Mr. Engel continued, “but we’ve had very good arguments. It’s just kind of a wait and see what happens.”
Alcosan’s public meetings on its plan are 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. and can be accessed through Zoom, at alcosan.org or on YouTube.