Sewer and Water
Water and sanitary sewer services are provided to most Shoreview residents by the City's Public Utility Division. This division operates and maintains wells, water storage facilities, sanitary sewer mains and lift stations; flushes city hydrants; and repairs fire hydrants.
The water supply comes from wells with a total pumping capacity of about 7,638 gallons per minute or 11 million gallons per day. To handle peak water loads, Shoreview also has the capacity to store 4 million gallons of water with two water towers and one ground reservoir. The water is chlorinated and fluoridated to meet Minnesota Department of Health standards.
The Utility Division also maintains sanitary sewer mains in Shoreview which discharge into the waste treatment system managed by the Metropolitan Council Environmental Services (MCES).
Water
Sewer Backups
If your sanitary sewer backs up, Shoreview's Utility Division may be your source of help. If the problem is in the main sewer line, city employees will come out to solve the problem. This service is available day or night, seven days a week including holidays. There is no fee for this service. The city is not responsible, however, for problems in the house or the sewer service line between the house and property line. Problems in these areas are the responsibility of the property owner.
Try to determine where the problem is before you call the city. This can be done by checking to see if your neighbor directly across the street is also having a problem. If your neighbor does not have a problem and the water backs up when you use it, the problem is in your system. To repair these problems, call a plumber or a sewer cleaning company. If water is coming up in the house when no water is being used, the problem is most likely in the city main sewer line.
Waste Water
The City of Shoreview has an underground sanitary sewer collection system that transports sewage from homes for wastewater treatment at a Metropolitan Council Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility. Gravity sewer service lines slope away from each house to combine in city gravity sewer mains. The collected wastewater flows through nearly 120 miles of underground piping within the city to sanitary sewer lift stations where pumps convey the wastewater to another sanitary sewer line or main interceptors for gravity flow to a Regional Treatment Facility.
The City is charged for the total flow treated by Metropolitan Council. We add in the costs of maintaining and operating the pumps and piping systems and charge each resident for their proportional use. The volume of wastewater generated in the city is consistent throughout the year. To avoid increased sewer rates in the summer when water may be used that does not enter the sewer system, we use the winter quarter water use to establish the sewer use and billing rate for the entire year.
Contact
For more information, contact water@shoreviewmn.gov or call 651.490.4661