Pittsburgh Water moving forward with lead line replacements in 4 more neighborhoods

Residents in some Pittsburgh neighborhoods will have the chance to ask questions about Pittsburgh Water's lead line replacement project as construction moves into new communities.

Bloomfield, Shadyside, Central Lawrenceville and Highland Park are next on the list for replacements. They make up the second-to-last group of neighborhoods for the entire project.

It's been years of work across the city's neighborhoods replacing both private and public lines. Since the lead line replacement first began in 2016, Pittsburgh Water has replaced thousands of service lines and is on track to replace all in its water system by 2027.

"I want to have cleaner water. I mean it's kind of late. It would've been nice to have this since the problem has been known for decades," said Bloomfield resident Brian Neibauer.

"We have invested around $150 million to get to the point we're at now. Upped tens of millions of dollars into these neighborhoods. So, it's expensive work, but there really is no price too high when it comes to the safety and quality of our water," said Pittsburgh Water CEO Will Pickering.

Pittsburgh Water says affected properties should have received a packet with information and recommends residents return those as soon as possible. They say not every home will need a replacement; they will coordinate with residents, and construction schedules could change. The work could look different depending on the location.

"It's pretty unique. It can involve us to be in customers' homes or, at the very least, we're impacting them, limiting the amount of on-street parking during days of construction," said Pickering.

But if people still have questions about the upcoming construction and process, there will be a virtual meeting.

"We're doing these two virtual town halls to open it up to any questions our customers have," said Pickering.

Those virtual meetings will begin Tuesday night for Bloomfield and Lawrenceville. Tuesday's meeting will be from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The second meeting will be Aug. 12 from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

If you do miss the town hall, Pittsburgh Water says all information will be uploaded to its website.