Duluth Council approves $1.4 million for more lead pipe replacements

Duluth homeowners tied to lead, galvanized-requiring-replacement or suspected water service lines will see more city replacement work ahead after the council approved a new $1.4 million contract to keep the program moving at no cost to property owners.

The vote came during a Duluth City Council meeting on May 11 that lasted less than 10 minutes, one of the shortest in recent months. Even in that compressed session, councilors moved a decision with immediate public health and household cost implications, especially for older neighborhoods where lead service lines remain in the ground.

The city says lead service line replacement projects are funded through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the State of Minnesota through the Minnesota Public Facilities Authority. Properties in planned project areas are usually notified about a year in advance, and the city says the work is done without charging property owners. Duluth also says properties with lead, galvanized requiring replacement or suspected lead services are automatically enrolled in the Lead Removal Program.

The latest contract extends a city effort that has already reached substantial scale. In a 2025 WDIO report, Duluth engineering specialist Jon Maruska said the city has about 10,000 lead water services. He said the city had completed 900 replacement projects since the program began, nearly 700 replacement jobs were finished in 2024, and Duluth planned to replace 1,800 lead service lines in 2025. City bidding documents for 2026 also show the work continuing, including an Endion Neighborhood project to replace 110 lead or galvanized iron service lines.

Councilors also approved an agreement connected to Amity Bluffs, a housing development east of Woodland Avenue. The project is privately funded and is not receiving taxpayer dollars, making it a notable addition to the city’s housing stock without public subsidy. Planning Commission records show the project was first laid out in May 2023 as a 25-acre subdivision with 15 lots ranging from 0.26 acres to 1.96 acres. The final plat for Amity Bluffs, filed by Amity Bluffs LLC, was approved in December 2023.

The brief meeting also included approvals for appointments to city boards and commissions, the quiet administrative work that keeps Duluth’s civic machinery running. The city says it has about 30 boards and commissions, and those posts feed into decisions on land use, oversight and public policy. In less than 10 minutes, the council handled water safety, housing growth and routine governance in one pass.