By: Alyssa Ochss | St. Clair Shores Sentinel | Published June 13, 2026
ST. CLAIR SHORES — At the St. Clair Shores City Council meeting on June 1, Mayor Kip Walby addressed frustration and confusion about the relief sewer project on Jefferson Avenue.
“The Jefferson Relief Sewer Project refers to installing a 60-inch diameter relief sewer under the southbound curb lane of Jefferson Ave. from 9 Mile Road to Rio Vista by micro-tunneling,” according to the city’s website.
Previous reporting indicated that in 2025, the project was estimated to take around 24 to 30 months to complete. It replaces decades old pipes and adds more capacity, so they don’t have to discharge combined sewer overflows into Lake St. Clair.
The project is owned by the Southeast Macomb Sanitary District and uses bipartisan-approved funding to complete it.
Recently, residents took to Facebook to express their frustration with the current stage of the project. For a while, it shut down 10 Mile Road and directed vehicles to the residential side roads. Citizens voiced concerns about vehicles speeding down the side streets lined with houses and residents going about their day.
Walby started off the meeting with a statement about the construction and opened the floor for council members to voice their opinions as well.
The mayor acknowledged the big issue at 10 Mile Road and Jefferson and explained the project once more.
“The Jefferson Relief Sewer Project, at the end of the day, is about water quality in the north end assisting in basement backups, but truthfully about water quality,” Walby said.
He said it’s about fewer combined sewer overflows into Lake St. Clair. CSOs occur when combined sewer systems become overwhelmed with rainwater and sewage, and the untreated water flows into nearby lakes and rivers.
Walby said the project has been funded by American Rescue Plan Act money as well as funding secured by state Sen. Kevin Hertel, D-St. Clair Shores, and U.S. Rep. John James, R-Shelby Township. However, he did say the lion’s share of the money comes from Macomb County through Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller.
He explained the CSOs go to Rio Vista and flow into the lake from there. The pipe itself discharges around eight or nine times and Walby said the goal is to get 50% fewer discharges.
“At the end of the day, you’re talking millions and millions of (gallons of) combined sewer overflows that will be pulled out of the system,” Walby said.
Walby called it a challenging project due to the boring technique they use and the way Jefferson curves. Instead of going straight through, they have to pick up the machinery and set it in the road multiple times. Along the affected areas are 19 side streets.
At the time of the meeting, crews had to shut down 10 Mile Road.
“The sanitary leads cross 10 Mile,” Walby said. “We had to shut 10 Mile down because you’ve got to raise that in order for the pipe to go underneath that. There’s not enough room to keep 10 Mile open.”
According to a Facebook post from the City of St. Clair Shores, Michigan - City Government page on June 12, the 10 Mile and Jefferson intersection had reopened.
Walby said it was always planned to shut Jefferson down to one way north of 10 Mile, something the businesses didn’t like. They explored the idea of having two-way traffic in the area, but it caused employee safety concerns, and the water line was closer to the westbound Jefferson lane than they thought.
He said signs have been put up around the area and that some people still don’t listen to the posted warnings. Walby said they can’t close down Lakeland Street because it’d push the traffic further down.
“I wish people would obey the detour and have Jefferson between 11 Mile Road and Lakeland be (for) residents only,” Walby said. “I know it’s a bigger pain, but that’s what we have to do at this point.”
He also said they feel for the businesses and that they understand the one-way traffic is a problem, but they have to worry about safety. Walby mentioned that the project is on schedule.
Councilman Chris Vitale said there is a silver lining because residents can use the side streets to get to the businesses.
“This is an opportunity to not have to stand in line for two hours and, of course, they need the business,” Vitale said.
Councilwoman Linda Bertges had a friend tell her about a comment from Mike’s on the Water owner Mike LeFevre. The friend asked him if the construction was impacting his business.
“‘He said last week they had the best week they’ve ever had since 2017,’” Bertges quoted from her friend’s message. “‘In his words, if they want to come see you, they’ll find a way.’”
Bertges also mentioned a couple of detours people could use to get to the businesses and urged residents to frequent them.
“It might be a little bit trying to get there, but they need you,” Bertges said.
Councilman John Caron is also a board member in SEMSD and he acknowledged that mistakes were made. He apologized to the residents on Lakeland.
“I can’t imagine what that would have been like waking up in the morning and you have a whole line of cars down the road,” Caron said.
He also said he thought the signage on the road pointing to the businesses was a lot better. He reiterated that the project is on time and mentioned it is also on budget.
Councilman Dave Rubello suggested that the city be more lenient with respect to sign ordinances for the businesses that would like to put up directional signs.
For more information, go to the St. Clair Shores website at scsmi.net.