Changes trim $740M from sewer project 12.1.10

Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard released details Wednesday of modifications to a 20-year sewer system upgrade that are expected to save ratepayers $740 million.
The city's renegotiation of a 2006 consent decree, announced last month by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency, includes an accelerated construction schedule. The projects will significantly reduce sewage overflows from systems that carry both storm runoff and sanitary waste.
In 2007, the mandated improvements and other upgrades were estimated to cost $3.8 billion, $300 million more than budgeted.
Ballard spoke about the sewer project at a meeting of the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee in Indianapolis.
By seeking alternative engineering, city officials were able to reduce that projected tab by $740 million, to about $3.1 billion.
The savings include a $444 million reduction from the original 20-year, $1.73 billion budget of the portion required by the consent decree, the city says.
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