Members Present: Chairman Douglas R. North, V.Chairman Marshall L. Harris, Clerk Stephen C. Lobik
Superintendent: Craig W. Jalbert
Secretary: Dale Johnson
Guest: Don Tata, from Tata & Howard Inc. (T&H)
Open the Meeting: The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m.
OLD BUSINESS:
Bunyan Road Well Improvements ~ Update:
Don came to introduce himself to Steve and give a brief update with regards to the latest amendment to the Bunyan Road Well Improvements contract. In June $80,000 was the original cost estimate for well drilling, D.L. Maher came in at $93,390, however; this was later reduced to $88,300 as a result of Craig’s efforts. The bottom line is that T&H incurred additional costs of $8,300 over what was expected for well drilling services.
Craig explained due to the time constraints and extension requests, it was agreed to move forward on the estimate to keep things moving. At the site visit D.L. Maher determined support was needed for their rig. This required preparation of a Notice of Intent for the installation of temporary pads at the well site. Additional work also included preparation of the Determination of Applicability for the installation of the production wells and completion of pump test.
Basically the contract is being modified by $20,100 plus $10,000 construction observation which is all figured into the USDA loan. Marty mentioned discussion has taken place right along about these changes as they were occurring and felt it was fair to accept the amendment.
Marty made a motion to accept Amendment No. 4 to the Bunyan Road Well Improvements T&H Job No 1569, Doug seconded the motion, motion passed unanimously.
Brief discussion then took place with regards to Storage Capacity. Currently the Ely Road storage tank is in need of re-painting, during rehabilitation it will be out of service, which requires an alternative storage tank. Don explained he determined the storage capacity by taking the average daily flow, peak flow, and fire flow, and 20 year growth into consideration and believes a half million gallon tank is what is required. Further discussion took place on location and where it would serve the system best. Many probabilities were discussed including feasibility, land issues, planned growth, and the best location from an engineering standpoint. Steve asked how long of a process this estimated to be, Don explained it is unlike a new well which takes years, and would only
take about 6-9 months to construct.
Once Bunyan Road well improvements are done, work will begin at Palmer Road to implement the next phase improvement at the Palmer Road well, and evaluate the old well to determine what options are available. Craig has old notes for references along with the camera inspection; discussion took place on the size of the casing and the impact on cleaning.
· Zone I Land: The Zone I radiuses around our new wells at Bunyan Rd. is now owned or controlled. Craig has both Conservation Restrictions that have been signed and notarized by the Grantees and the Grantors and all paperwork will be forwarded to DEP for additional signatures.
Sewer Infiltration/Inflo Study ~ Update:
As an overview for Steve, Craig explained how Palmer’s flow went down, and how Monson’s stayed consistent with past years, thus our percentage and cost went up. Craig hoped to learn more about an infiltration program, and what options are available to cut down on flow, thus costs to Palmer. Tom Hansen from T & H collected data to determine how much of a problem we have and if it is cost effective to address it. The basic recommendation turned out to be more cost effective to target specific areas that would be at risk to infiltration, which is what Craig has Tom and Dave doing now.
GIS Archview Mapping:
Craig explained to Steve how T & H has completed a map system that allows for comprehensive planning, lot layouts and elevations which are now readily available. The old sewer records were scanned converted to a PDF format on a disk and are now on the computer which were put on an Archview GIS system, the water system is in a basic map on Archview. One of the problems is that the Mass GIS Roadways is not accurate; the next step would be to justify the roadways. After Don completed his engineering services update, the Commissioners thanked him for attending our meeting. Don then departed and left for home.
Accept the Minutes: A motion was made by Steve and seconded by Marty to accept the April 26, 2005 meeting minutes. Motion passed unanimously.
Palmer Road PURD Project (Quaboag Heights – PURD
· Tighe & Bond (T&B) Meeting with Gary/Ted/Chip: Gary Weiner of Ecotec Environmental Associates, Inc, Ted Bukowski, Chip LaPointe, Dave Loring from T&B (who works with the Planning Board, and who we have also contracted to do construction observation) and Craig met at T&B offices to discuss Quaboag Heights Project. The blue print review was relatively easy. There is a hang up with tying into Route 32 drainage, as they thought they had a permit to do, however it turns out the permit was only a driveway permit, and so they must now go through Mass Highway in order to proceed.
Craig had an opportunity to speak with Mass Highway and was advised in addition to them getting permission to tie into drainage also through Mass Highway there also need to be a traffic management plan.
With regards to the easement, Ted agreed to take care of the labor if we took care of the parts. Craig explained how an 8” line from the new development would be run to Country Club Drive, and would also include a new hydrant at our cost. Marty further explained how this was due to Craig looking into the future and the advantages it would have on the system.
Craig explained to Steve the agreement between the Grahams and the department that have been written up by Town Council Ken Albano.
Hospital Road Reconstruction: Craig is not sure where the project is as he has heard nothing about the bids being awarded; Craig hypothesized that the slowdown in the process could have something to do with the Railroad or maybe the bridge.
Craig informed the Commission the Special Article request was approved to transfer $70,000 from the Water Enterprise Fund to go toward the Hospital Road Water Main Replacement Project to reduce the borrowing amount of the Water Departments share of costs. Based on Bid costs our portion of the project should be approximately $185,000.
NEW BUSINESS:
Sump Pumps Plumbed Into Sewer System: Craig asked Doug if anything existed in the Plumbing Codes, which there is not. Doug mentioned sump pumps usually go in after the fact. Craig expressed his concern about them being hooked up to the Sewer System, without being charged on the sewer bill. The Commission discussed what could be done, possible i.e., sump pump surcharge although it is unknown how this would be verified and enforced. Steve asked if there were any liability issues if the department were to ask such hook ups be removed. Doug is concerned about where then would they drain to. Craig will check on legalities. Marty suggested covering this in the Rules and Regulations.
Cable Internet: Craig advised the Commission it is his intention to get rid of the 56K line that the Collectors office pays half of and switch to Comcast Cable connection which will improve the speed of connecting to the Vadar Billing Program at the Town Offices. For security purposes the IT people suggest a Static IP Service which will cost $179/month through Comcast. Craig will get a cost estimate for a similar service using DSL from Verizon.
OTHER BUSINESS:
M&M Chemical Building: Doug inquired if there was any news on the alteration project; both Craig and Marty have not heard any updates. Doug mentioned the hydrant is leaking, which seems to happen when the water is off, Marty confirmed the water is off due to sprinkler work which is expected to be repaired this week.
NEXT MEETING:
A motion was made by Marty and seconded by Steve to set the next meeting for Wednesday, June 1, 2005. Motion passed unanimously.
ADJOURN:
A motion was made by Marty and seconded by Steve to adjourn at 8:00 p.m. Motion passed unanimously.
___________________________________
Stephen C. Lobik
Clerk
cc: Selectmen
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