Plans for the Lansing-area sewer project solidified Monday as the city plans for a late-July groundbreaking.

City Council approved an assessment policy that determines how affected property owners will pay for the project. How much people will pay is still not set in stone — the city has received project bids and knows each of the roughly 200 residents should pay approximately $15,000 per residence if costs are to be split evenly. However, citizens concerned with the assessments — and there have been many to date — will still get the chance to voice their thoughts during an assessment hearing scheduled for June 21. Final assessments will be determined then.

On Thursday, citizens will also get the chance to attend informational sessions regarding the assesment process. No votes will be taken at these.

The assessment policy enacted Monday states that residents will pay for 100 percent of the project. It also states that vacant properties will have up to five years or until developed to start paying, and that homes with compliant septic systems can wait up to five years to hook up to the new city line.

The line will bring septic service to 338 acres north of town that officially joined the city early last year. Residents in Lansing Township originally petitioned to join the city to get a sewer system several years ago, but the process was drawn out as details of how the annexation and the project would occur were hammered out.

Without the sewer system, much of the area’s waste discharges into the Cedar River, which has prompted the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to get involved and see that the issue gets resolved.