Crews will finish dismantling a portion of the temporary bypass sewer line and barricades along Ala Wai Boulevard this week, removing an eyesore for residents and restoring a 900-foot section of on-street parking.

The work marks a turning point for the city in trying to prevent another massive sewage spill into the Ala Wai Canal.

So far, the city has spent more than $40 million to install a temporary 42-inch sewer pipeline along the floor of the Ala Wai and make other improvements. With the above-ground emergency bypass line no longer needed, city officials say they can now focus on constructing a permanent underground main to serve the community.

Work to remove a big, black sewer line along Ala Wai Boulevard — between Walina Street and Seaside Avenue — started Oct. 9. Crews will clean the area and remove barricades this week, restoring about 30 much-needed on-street parking spaces.

However, a second section of pipe and barricades, between Seaside and Lewers Street, will remain to provide back-up pumps in case the Beachwalk pump station goes down. The section blocks off an additional 35 parking spaces.

The pipes and pumps went up in July 2006, closing on-street parking, a bike lane and the sidewalk for a five-block stretch along Ala Wai Boulevard.

Residents say they're happy to see some of the pipes coming down.

"People are upset we lost parking along the Ala Wai," said Richard Personius, a Waikiki Neighborhood Board member who sees the sewer bypass pipes from his apartment overlooking Ala Wai Boulevard. "It is an eyesore to the community."

Bob Finley, Waikiki Neighborhood Board chairman, said lots of residents have complained about the look of the pipes. But they have also said they'll put up with it, if it means preventing a spill. "I'll be happy when the whole project is done," Finley said.

Work to dismantle the pipes comes 18 months after a 42-inch sewer line on Kai'olu Street ruptured during a spate of heavy rains. The break forced the city to dump more than 48 million gallons of raw sewage into the Ala Wai Canal and kicked off the emergency sewer line project, officials said.

The biggest part of the emergency plan — laying a 5,000-foot-long temporary line on the floor of the canal — was finished last year and allowed the city to bypass the aging Kai'olu Street main. The temporary line is now pumping out millions of gallons of sewage a day from Waikiki.

Construction on a permanent line is not expected to start for at least two more years, but engineers are working now to design the pipeline. Craig Nishimura, deputy director of the city Department of Design and Construction, said engineers are still drawing up plans for where the permanent pipeline will be laid. It is unclear how long the project will take.

Meanwhile, construction crews are also making repairs to the Kai'olu Street main, as the city believes it could be used on an as-needed basis during emergencies. The main is not currently being used.

The Ala Wai Canal spill was the largest recorded in the state's history. It closed Waikiki's most famous beaches, prompted health concerns and sent paddlers fleeing from canal waters. The city has still not heard from the federal Environmental Protection Agency on what fines and sanctions will result from the spill. Dean Higuchi, EPA spokesman in Hawai'i, said the agency has not made it clear when a decision on fines will be made.

But he added that the main objective of the EPA was to make sure the city was drawing up solutions for Waikiki's aging sewer infrastructure. "Our goal is to make sure they really start to work on vulnerabilities" in the system, he said.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.