Sewer Issue on LG’s East Side

An ongoing sewer problem on the east side of La Grange has one resident digging for answers.

Daniel Lewis takes care of his 92-year-old mother’s house near the end of East Travis St. For years now, he says, a problem in the City’s underground pipe causes sewage to back up on the property.

Lewis said he believes there is a slight crack in the underground sewer pipe. Toilet paper and other debris gets hung up inside the pipe. Every so often, it clogs the pipe and sewage from houses and businesses uphill has no where to go except up and into Lewis’ mother’s house.

“It used to come up in the house, in the toilet and shower,” Lewis said. “I got a plumber to install some cleanouts. Now it drains in the front yard and the back. It drains into the neighbor’s yard, and their dogs run in it.”

“It’s one thing to be dealing with your own sewage,” Lewis added. “But it’s another when you’re dealing with other people’s crap.”

City crews came out last Thursday to break the clog, but not before it left a stinky mess all over the yard. Lewis said the city workers sympathize with his plight.

“They say it’s horrible,” Lewis said. “They feel bad about it. They’ve asked the City to put some money in the budget to fix it. But then it gets taken out to do something else.” Unfortunately, it’s not an easy problem to fix. City Manager Jack Thompson said the line needs to be replaced. But the project is estimated to cost over a million dollars.

“The trick now is to figure out how to pay to fix it,” Thompson said. Thompson said the City will apply for a forgivable loan through the State’s Clean Water Revolving Fund to help with several infrastructure issues around town. He said the sewer line in Lewis’neighborhood could be replaced using those funds.

“It’s money that can fix these kinds of issues, and it’s something that really needs to get fixed,” Thompson said.

For now, Thompson said, City crews will keep a close eye on the line and work to keep it from backing up.

“It’s something we need to work on,” Thompson said.