A city built between 1960 and 1979
Ballwin incorporated on December 29, 1950 with about 750 residents. By 1960 the count was 5,710, and by 1990 it had reached 21,816. The city's 2007 plan, using 2000 Census figures, puts the median year built at 1973.
That plan also shows 27.8 percent of housing built in the 1960s and 31.0 percent in the 1970s, which is 58.8 percent from 1960 to 1979. Over 40 percent of properties were already more than 50 years old when the plan was written. In houses from that period we expect original cast-iron drains, early plastic fittings and a clay lateral that has had years to take on roots.
What the 1990s annexations added
Growth in the 1990s was driven mainly by annexation, which pulled newer large-lot subdivisions into the city. The plan names developments such as Villas at Meadowbrook, Clayton Corners at Clayton Road and Henry Avenue, and Spring Cove at Ries Road and Big Bend Road.
Which streets are oldest is not documented beyond that, so tell dispatch your build decade when you call. A newer house points us toward fixtures and the water heater, and an older one toward drains and the lateral.
The lateral, in the city's own words
Ballwin defines a lateral as the pipe carrying sewage from your house to the main, and the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District owns that main. Voters approved a $28 annual fee in April 1999. The program reimburses up to $4,500 per job (raised from $3,000), with a $150 application through the MyGov portal.
By the city's account, the likeliest sign of a failing lateral is a backup in the house, often in the basement and first under heavy water use like a washing machine. Clearing roots more than once a year counts as repair, while annual clearing is normal maintenance. The pipe under the house is not covered, and the program is not meant to satisfy a home sale contingency.
Buying or selling in Ballwin
Because the program will not fix a sale contingency, a sewer camera inspection before closing is the practical way to learn what the lateral looks like. Ask for the video and keep it with your closing papers.
Creeks, soils and the November 2024 rain
The city plan says floodplain areas lie mainly along Fishpot Creek, Grand Glaize Creek, Kiefer Creek and the Meramec River. Soils along the Meramec are described as unsuited to built improvements because of how often they flood.
On November 4 to 6, 2024, the National Weather Service logged 8.34 inches of rain in a Ballwin report. Grand Glaize Creek at Valley Park, downstream of Ballwin, crested at 17.33 feet against a 13 foot flood stage. Homes near these creeks should test a sump pump and consider a battery backup.
Cellar water or a sewer smell tonight?
Call the 24/7 line and tell us the street and the symptom. Dispatch will say what to shut off while we line up the work.
The Manchester Road corridor
Manchester Road is Ballwin's main commercial corridor, and the city's Olde Towne Plaza is a retail center on it. Vlasis Park, 31 acres off Kehrs Mill Road north of Manchester, hosts Ballwin Days and sits beside the Government Center and Public Works.
Restaurants and shops along the corridor often need commercial plumbing help after closing, when a drain backs up. The city does not offer commercial permits online, so those jobs start with a phone call to City Hall.
Permits through the MyGov portal
Since November 1, 2025, Ballwin requires all contractor and permit applications through its MyGov Permit Portal. Online residential plumbing permits include backflow preventer, plumbing remodel, plumbing repair, single family residence plumbing and water heaters, which has its own permit type. Inspections are scheduled by calling City Hall.
Ballwin also asks contractors to hold a Ballwin licence and an active St. Louis County licence in their field. The city has adopted the International Plumbing Code, 2015 edition under Bill 4004 of 2018, and has been drafting a newer edition. Ask the Inspections Department which edition applies to your job.
Which services we lead with in Ballwin
The order follows the housing age and the lateral program.
- Laterals and mains.
Sewer line repair first, since clay pipe, roots and a $4,500 reimbursement cap shape most repair decisions.
- Repeat roots.
A line that needs clearing more than once a year may be a repair, so hydro jetting followed by a camera is worth asking about.
- Basement water.
Creek corridors make sump pump repair and backwater valve checks a regular request.
- Heaters at end of life.
Original-era heaters have usually been swapped once already, so replacement often comes with a permit question.
Before we arrive: older-house checks
Four steps matched to Ballwin's housing and lateral rules.
Find the cleanout.
Locate the sewer cleanout near the foundation or in the yard, but do not open it if it is under pressure. Tell dispatch where it is.
Watch the washer.
A lateral backup shows first when the washer drains. Stop laundry and the dishwasher until we have cleared the line.
Shut off supply.
Close the main at the meter or where the line enters the house. Original copper and old shutoffs can stick, so turn them gently.
Take photos.
Photograph any water damage, the heater data plate and the drain you saw backing up. Your insurance policy decides what is covered.
Next-door cities
Our Ellisville page covers its separate lateral program with city-approved contractors. Chesterfield sits north, with levee and floodplain concerns of its own.
Ballwin, MO on the map
Questions we hear in Wildwood, MO
Ballwin has two standard ZIPs that both list Ballwin as the preferred city. ZIP 63011 holds the Government Center at 1 Government Center, the police station on Kehrs Mill Road, Public Works on Park Drive and the Ballwin Golf Course on Holloway Road. It also serves Ellisville addresses, including Ellisville City Hall.
ZIP 63021 includes The Pointe at Ballwin Commons on Ballwin Commons Circle, and it lists Ellisville and Manchester as aliases. The ZIP lists here come from lookup databases, so USPS confirmation remains open. Give dispatch your street address.
Yes, at any hour. The 24/7 dispatch line takes Ballwin calls on weeknights, weekends and holidays for sewer backups, bursts and failed heaters. Use the 24/7 emergency line and say which ZIP you are in. We can often book a same-day visit, and you will know the price before we start.
Ballwin reimburses repairs to the pipe from the outside wall to the main, up to $4,500 per job, with a $150 MyGov application. The pipe under the house and routine annual clearing are not covered. Call the Inspections Department to confirm your repair qualifies before the work begins.
The city lists water heaters as their own permit type in the MyGov portal. Whether every swap needs one is not spelled out, so ask the Inspections Department. Contractors must hold the city and county licences.
Heavy rain can overload the sewer main or push groundwater around the foundation. A floor drain backing up points to the lateral or main, and water at the wall points to the sump. Stop water use and call us for a camera look.
Missouri American Water serves Ballwin. The utility's 2023 regional report printed hardness of 66 to 226 ppm as calcium carbonate by plant, and it does not name the city, so we cannot tell you your number. A home test kit or the utility's yearly water report is the place to start.
Have a question this page did not answer? Call (855) 575-2890 at any hour and a dispatcher will talk it through.