A sewer project that has seen its share of delays is now not expected to be completed until this fall.

The city of Sedona and project contractor, Kinney Construction Services, LLC, began the State Route 179 Sewer Main Replacement Project in April. The original anticipated completion date for the $690,000 project was late July.

“A variety of factors are at play for the project not being complete,” Sedona Wastewater Director Roxanne Holland said. “There have been delays due to unknown conditions in the field, conflicts with other utilities and the most recent stop work order, which was 12 days. The contractor currently antici­pates an early October completion date.”

The 12-day work stoppage occurred following three sewage spills.

The first spill of 1,000 gallons of sewage was June 28 and a second spill of 2,000 gallons occurred July 7.

The third and largest spill of 15,000 to 20,000 gallons of “untreated liquid effluent” along State Route 179 near the Hillside Sedona shopping center occurred Aug. 4.

Residents and passersbys reported the effluent coming out of a manhole in front of the Hillside Sedona shopping center and flowing into a storm drain which then drained into Oak Creek, approxi­mately 750 feet downstream from the State Route 179 bridge over Oak Creek.

Water quality counts taken on Aug. 19 show E. coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E. coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units/100mL of water for recreational swimming. The scope of work for the project includes up-sizing the existing 8-inch sewer main to a 12-inch sewer main, along State Route 179 between Copper Cliffs Drive and the Schnebly Hill roundabout — approxi­mately 1,750 linear feet.

Additionally, the project will replace the existing 12-inch sewer main that crosses Oak Creek at the pedestrian bridge along State Route 179.

According to a city report, the 2017 Wastewater Master Plan Update included an evaluation of collec­tion system capacity using sewer modeling. The 8-inch sewer main that runs along State Route 179 between Highland Road and Copper Cliffs Drive showed minor surcharging and insufficient capacity.

The project will increase the size of the sewer pipe to 12 inches, which will allow for sufficient capacity. The project will also replace a deteriorated 12-inch sewer line running under the pedestrian bridge at Tlaquepaque with a new pipe.