Application for Sewer/Water Extension

General Information & Guide

About Us: 

    The Engineering Division of the Public Works Department prides itself on being versatile and resourceful with respect to all engineering related projects for the city. On a daily basis, this division’s staff is involved in a variety of tasks ranging from administering design work for school projects including the new Ellsworth Avenue Elementary School, the Park Avenue School roof replacement, investigations of roof conditions at several other schools, sprinkler system installation in Danbury High School Buildings A, B and E, replacement of the fire alarm system and ADA Code compliance work at Danbury High School. In addition, the division worked on the Rogers Park all purpose artificial turf field, on sanitary sewer and water installations, to managing the construction of the new police headquarters. 

    The division, which includes several licensed professional engineers, a licensed surveyor, and a traffic engineer among its staff, takes great satisfaction in the design and administration of worthwhile, soundly engineered, safe, and budget-conscious designs for construction, renovations and improvements. 

    Engineering also takes very seriously its responsibilities to the public and the city to ensure that proposed projects by private developers are properly designed to prevent negative impacts to abutting properties, neighbors and the public in general. Engineering staff work closely with consultants, contractors, architects, engineers, the Public Utilities Division, the Planning and Zoning Department, the Health Department, the Fire Marshal’s Office, and other city departments during a project’s review and approval process. The division also provides regular technical reports and reviews to the Common Council for its monthly meetings.

Our Accomplishments: 

    This year the Division approved 214 sanitary sewer and water connection permits. The division spends a considerable amount of time designing and administering sanitary sewer, water line, storm drainage and roadway improvement assessment projects. The division made significant progress this year in reducing the number of pending projects on the list of projects for which the Common Council has received petitions, and is currently working on the designs of several sanitary sewer and water line assessment projects. 

    The division is working closely with the State of Connecticut Department of Transportation on applications for, and construction of, approximately $2.6 million dollars in federal stimulus road improvement and bridge improvement monies. Funding will be used for the reconstruction of the Backus Avenue Bridge and for paving White Street, Franklin Street and Franklin Street Extension, if approved by the State DOT. 

    To save city money, the Engineering and Construction Services Divisions of the Public Works Department took over the administration of the construction of the new Ellsworth Avenue Elementary School that will replace the current Roberts Avenue School. The new school will be open for classes for the start of the 2009/2010 school year. 

    In conjunction with the city’s Information Technology Division and Tax Collector’s Office, our division is working on the implementation of a new computer software program to compute individual property assessments for Public Works improvement assessment projects. This software will save the division time, and allow the Tax Collector’s Division and others to use assessment information without the need to duplicate much of the work. 

    The division inspects the construction of sanitary sewers, water mains, subdivision roads, and storm drains to make certain that these installations meet current city and state standards before their acceptance by the city. The division also supervised the completion of a state funded report on the Aqua Vista private water system. The division worked in-house to survey and design solutions to various long standing storm drainage problems throughout the city located at Garfield Avenue, Williams Street and Shelter Rock Road, alleviating icing and other hazardous conditions. 

    The division also designs, installs and maintains traffic signals. It collects and analyzes traffic volume and accident information. The traffic section of the division is presently working with the State DOT on the development, design, and construction of a number of projects such as Route 7 South, Route 6 corridor improvements, Route 53 and Route 37 intersection, and I-84 Exit 6 improvements, which are intended to address traffic conditions in the area. Traffic personnel were actively involved in the design and implementation of the communication network for the new police headquarters and are working on the design of a traffic signal coordination project for Backus Avenue. The Traffic Engineer is handling project management of the State Department of Economic Development funded Boehringer Ingelheim/Briar Ridge Road roadway improvement project. 

    Engineering provides a friendly and responsive staff on a daily basis to assist residents in their search for maps and information regarding new projects in their neighborhoods or sanitary sewer and water lines in their areas. The Engineering Division staff also provides information and mapping to the Police Department, Fire Department, Health Department and others as part of the Public Works team.