Akron Township Asset Management Plan

In 2014, the Village of Akron was awarded a $425,000 grant as part of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE)’s Stormwater, Asset Management and Wastewater (SAW) program initiative, to develop an asset management plan for the Village’s wastewater and stormwater sewer systems.

The SAW program provides grant money for the development of plans to identify and manage stormwater and/or wastewater assets, stormwater treatment management plans, planning and design of sewage, stormwater, or nonpoint source pollution reduction projects, and the testing and demonstration of innovative water quality improvement projects. The goal of the program is to accelerate the statewide use of asset management practices that improve Michigan’s water quality and public health.

Spicer Group assisted the Village of Akron officials with applying for and the administration of the SAW grant, along with the development of the asset management plans for the village’s wastewater system and stormwater sewer system, which were built in the late 1970’s. This work included developing an inventory of the village-owned assets, developing a GIS database for the systems within the village’s service area, and then developing the database and digital maps of the area.

Throughout the process, 77 sanitary manholes were inspected and 99 storm structures were inspected. The state and condition of those assets was determined with researching existing information, on-site inspections, and the televising of pipes. Many of the residents had no idea this infrastructure was buried in the right-of-way in front of their homes. More than 17,000 feet of sanitary sewer pipe was televised, and more than 10,000 feet of stormsewer pipe was televised, including 2,500 feet of county drain. The condition of all the assets was rated, along with the criticality of each of the assets, and working with Village of Akron officials, a level of service for the wastewater and stormsewer system was determined.

Spicer Group developed a plan for the village on how to maintain and improve their system and to also develop a revenue structure to implement a capital improvement project plan. This will keep the system running for many years to come.