The 36-inch water main below Washington Street destabilized by a March 26 land shift near Jackson Street will be rerouted under the city’s direction and paid for by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Corps spokesman Kavanaugh Breazeale said this morning.

“It needs to be done and, basically, we’re going to provide 100 percent funding and the city is going to decide where it goes,” Breazeale said.

A cost estimate and time line are still to be determined. A detailed agreement between the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen and Corps will follow.

“We’ve got a plan about 90 percent in place,” said Vicksburg Public Works Director Bubba Rainer. “We’re out there today pulling manholes and trying to locate all the utilities that may come into play. We’ve got to have a route in place before we can get any cost estimates or talk about a time line.”

The pipe is the key feeder from the Port of Vicksburg well field and treatment facility into the city’s network serving 10,000 business and residential customers.

Rainer said the city likely will divert the pipe east off Washington to Walnut Street and  north of the shift site, likely around First East Street. On Walnut, the line would run parallel to its current route for a few blocks before tying back into the Washington Street line somewhere south of the shift.

“It’s going to be a difficult relocation,” said Rainer, who added engineering will have to be done before construction can begin, and a contractor will have to be hired to complete the job.

The land shift — which left several 6-inch cracks in Washington Street and a sagging sidewalk — was discovered by a contract crew doing nearby groundwork on the Corps’ developing interpretive center and museum. City and Corps officials immediately began working to stabilize the pipe by pushing tons of sand against the base of the slide and sealing up the roadway.

The museum is set to open next year, just south of where the 1,450-ton MV Mississippi IV was placed in 2007. Breazeale said work on the museum has been halted for the time being, but added there’s no way of knowing yet if it will delay the anticipated 2011 opening.

“The construction of the main building by that wall (where the land shift occurred) will be put on hold — really, until everybody feels that it is safe to continue,” he said.

No water service has been lost in the city since the pipe’s stability was compromised, but city emergency management officials have suggested residents keep a three-day supply of bottled water on hand.

Meanwhile, organizers of Riverfest, which will kick off Friday, April 16, said this morning the city has asked that the band stage, previously at China and Washington, be moved to South and Washington, three blocks south.

The city board is expected to discuss the stage move Friday.

Riverfest President Erin Hern said the 42nd annual Vicksburg-Warren County Riverfest Arts & Crafts Show will not be affected by the water main, and will once again be held near City Hall along Walnut, South and Crawford streets on Saturday of the festival weekend. The free daytime entertainment offerings along Washington Street will also go on as scheduled, she said.

Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com