The new waterline at the southeast corner of 10th Street and Wabash Avenue has failed to wash out the corner. Water is shut off in that area, but no customer is without water at this time because water feeds from both directions at that location. Crews are currently investing the nature of the failure to determine the cause. They will know more as the day progresses and the work crew is able to dig into the impacted area. The water line is under warranty through COBB Construction which installed the line.
The city of Lakeland Water Utilities has shut off the water to the area (there are no customers out of service) and set up temporary traffic control in the area until permanent control can be established. A Water Utilities Inspector will be onsite to verify the repair work. Once repaired, the Water Department will conduct sample testing per the Polk County Health Department. The waterline was part of a larger $5.1M project that was completed in April 2022. The 0.85-mile project provided a two-lane roadway, 6’ wide sidewalks on both sides of the street, street lighting, a new railroad crossing, a stormwater drainage system, and an improved intersection at 10th Street with the addition of a new traffic signal.
The consulting engineer on the project stated It appears that there is some settling on the southwest and northwest corners of the intersection as well. The pavement is pulling away from the curbing and the culvert bulkhead shows cracking and settling. Crews are on the scene and working on repairs. Currently, the northbound right-hand turn lane is closed, but this is not affecting traffic. Traffic can still make a right-hand turning movement from the center lane. At this time, it doesn’t look as if the intersection or roadway will be completely closed but there may be some lane shifting through the area while work is being done.