Lafayette Sewer Project Gets Underway LAFAYETTE, IN (wbaa) - Groundbreaking on a multi-million dollar Lafayette sewer project is set for Monday.

The underground tunnel will be built from the Pearl River Lift Station near First and Chestnut Streets, run along Second Street, and come out at Riehle Plaza.

The nearly half-mile long, ten-foot wide pipe will hold one-point-three million gallons of water.

During heavy rain, it will keep raw sewage out of the Wabash River by storing combined sewer and storm water until the treatment plant catches up and is able to filter it.

The tunnel, new lift station, and related work are costing the city roughly 27-million dollars.

The Pearl River Lift Station began operating in January.

The underground tunnel is scheduled for completion by July 2009.

Three separate hikes in sewer rates since April 2006 are paying for the projects.

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