QUINCY — The Quincy City Council approved a $26,203 project to replace 310 feet of water pipe along state Route 281.

The steel pipe will be replaced with 8-inch PVC pipe. The amount was added to a contract with Jahn’s Pipe Construction, which is replacing water valves in the city.

“That section of pipe, probably that whole section of pipe, is in pretty bad shape,” Maintenance Supervisor Dave Reynolds said. “This old steel lines, they are really starting to deteriorate.”

Larry Julius, a principal with the engineering firm Gray and Osborne, said when the pipe was uncovered it started leaking.

“That’s the problem with this old thin-walled steel pipe. It was great during World War II, when they just needed pipe to stick into the ground. This pipe was sold all over the western United States to cities because it was cheap.”

Julius said this piece was skipped during a project to replace the steel pipe.

“This actually goes back about 10 years, when we had a Public Works Trust Fund loan to replace this old steel pipe,” he said. “We replaced what we though was all of it throughout the southwest section of town.”

The engineers believe the two-block section between M Street Southwest and N Street Southwest on state Route 281 wasn’t replaced with the rest of the pipe, Julius said.

“This is one where we had shown in the comprehensive plan to replace with 16-inch up to M Street Southwest. That would tie in with the 16-inch pipe that crosses Central (Avenue South,)” he said.

When Julius spoke with City Administrator Tim Snead, they decided to go with 8-inch pipe because of the cost, availability of pipe and the contractor.

“We haven’t seen the growth in the south, or southerly, portion of town yet, so the 8-inch really will work,” he said.

Julius said the price for the project is good and includes restoration and asphalt patching. At this point, he believes the steel pipe only extends two blocks.

“It’s hard to tell, some of the records are pretty old,” he said. “It could go further. Until it’s dug up, nobody knows.”