Altadena's latest rebuilding roadblock: Who pays the $70 million needed for sewage upgrades?

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Michele Hanisee has been doing everything in her power to expedite the arduous process of rebuilding her Altadena home.But after navigating permitting delays, insurance stalemates and design flaws, there’s still one big unresolved issue that’s complicating her progress: sewage.

Hanisee owns one of nearly 700 properties in Altadena that’s never had sewer lines, instead operating for decades on now-outdated septic tanks or even more archaic and environmentally hazardous cesspools.L.A.

County officials — and many residents, included Hanisee — would like to connect these pockets of Altadena to the county sewage system.But the cash-strapped county government said it simply cannot afford the estimated $70 million the new lines would cost.

And although officials hope the county can eventually acquire state and federal funding for the project, the lack of certainty on the issue has left hundreds of fire survivors in a stalemate.“Do I build [with] septic or wait for a sewer line?” said Hanisee, 59.

She said this issue has been particularly frustrating as the county promised expedited rebuilding permits; “It doesn’t help much if they don’t expedite the infrastructure work,” she said.It’s also a major financial concern.

Several fire survivors in this situation told The Times that they feel torn between planning for an upgrade to county-run sewers, or just moving ahead with rebuilding and improving their onsite wastewater systems.Either option could bring hefty costs, particularly if the county doesn’t end up paying for the sewer line upgrade and it falls on residents.

The worst-case scenario, many said, would be fixing up their septic system to meet current requirements, and subsequently having to pay for the sewer line installation and connection later on.“How do you move forward when you don’t know how much money you have to spend on the build?” Hanis...