Work has begun to improve the drainage issue for downtown Columbia. The area has been plagued for years with flooding.
Phase 1 of the project began last month next to the Marion County Courthouse. Mayor Justin McKenzie said the $534,825 phase would include replacing the 48-inch pipe with a 60-inch pipe to fix the elevation to allow the rain water to drain more quickly. T.L. Wallace Construction had the lowest bid and has a contract period of 150 days to complete the work.
McKenzie said the work was beginning because this is normally the driest time of the year, and to replace the pipe with the new one, they will have to dig about 18 feet into the ground. A couple of the buildings that have been empty and falling apart will be removed where the new line is going to go. The owner of the buildings signed deeds to allow the city to have the properties.
The project at the south end of Main Street is Phase 1 of a four-phase project to improve the downtown drainage.
McKenzie said a lot of effort has been put forth since he came into office to revitalize the downtown area.
“We are willing trying to breathe life into our downtown,” McKenzie said Friday.
He said he thinks it will only get better. With holding events downtown, more foot traffic is coming in, he said. With the way the downtown area has trouble with flash floods, doing something about the drainage was something necessary to do.
Phase 1 began at the intersection of Broad and South Main streets and will continue south.
McKenzie said he is hoping what is being done now will last many years before anyone has to tackle the problem again.
