Commissioners Present: Douglas R. North Chairman, Joseph C Prior Vice Chairman, Paul C. DeMaio Clerk
Employees Present: Superintendent: Craig W. Jalbert; Secretary: Dale Barnes-Johnson
Open the Meeting: The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m.
Accept the Meeting Minutes: A motion was made by Joe to accept the October 16, 2013 meeting minutes, motion seconded by Paul. Motion passed unanimously.
OLD/NEW BUSINESS
New Town Office and Police Department Building ~ PDS Engineering & Construction is the General Contractor for the project, Pierce Builders is the excavating subcontractor. Pierce prepared for the water connection by exposing the main Tuesday the 12th and thus was ready to proceed early today (Wednesday the 13th). The connection went as planned; however they were unable to finish backfilling and compacting today so they road plated the area overnight and will finish tomorrow. The only thing Craig would have changed would have been involving the Board of Health sooner in the process. The scheduled day of the water tap was unknown at the October 16th Construction meeting which Craig attended. It was not until the October 30th Construction meeting which
Jan attended where it was announced they wanted this done by November 15th, however no date was set. Work would necessitate shutting down water on Main St., from State St to Cushman St. for an extended period of time. Craig spoke to Ross at Adams who requested the work be done on a Wednesday. The contractor came to the MW&S Dept. on Friday, November 1st and it was decided the work would take place on November 13th. Monday, November 5th Craig started personally notifying businesses and facilities that would be affected and at that point the BOH was notified. On Wednesday, November 6th the BOH sent letters to the affected food service providers requiring that their business close during the water off time unless they could provide a plan as to how they could meet food prep regulations. The late notice caused a problem for the BOH as they didn’t have the time to get written responses so all communications were
verbal between the BOH and the businesses. Ideally, the Board of Health (BOH) should have been involved earlier so that the communications with the businesses could have been done normally in a written fashion. The MW&S Dept. oversaw the work and operated all valves and hydrants in conjunction with the project. The work consisted of uncovering the existing 12” water main, removing the old tee and valve arrangement and replacing it with new 12” valves and a 12 x 6 tee and valve that will service the new building.
Special Town Meeting ~ CPA funds were approved for the purpose of installing an irrigation system and drinking fountain on the Monson HS Baseball Field next spring. Craig met with Tim Pascale and Town Planner Dan Laroche, who discussed the possibility of installing a fountain on Veterans Field if funds remain in the existing grant package. Craig asked the Commission if they would be willing to donate the parts and labor for the project. Seeing it is for the benefit of the Town, the Commission was agreeable however would like to wait and see what the requirements for the spray park and meter pit will be and then determine if it is reasonable.
Sewer Inflow & Infiltration (I&I) ~ The testing and sealing on the 18” main is now complete (Bliss Street to Herb Murray’s); the section from Herb Murray’s to the car wash was completed in 2009. We are still waiting for the last invoice for this phase. When we have it Craig will provide a breakdown on the amount we spent. Cross country manholes have two separate covers; a very heavy outer cover and a gasketed inner cover. Two inner covers were found broken; Craig bought replacement parts from EJ Ironworks. Gaskets have been replaced and the inner covers clamped down, a tar rope gasket is used to seal the outer cover and then the manhole frame is covered with 6 mil polyethylene and buried. 2013 wastewater pumping is hitting low points. The plan now
is to regroup and prepare to test and seal the 24” main from the car wash to the sewer station, this stretch will be difficult and require 2 police detail officers daily while on Route 32 until it cuts off by Fenton Road. Timing for the next phase is unknown at this time. Future projects next spring include addressing services to accommodate a Mass Highway repaving project (Chestnut to the car wash), finish up Washington Street which may be paved next year and hydrant flushing.
Tata & Howard (T&H) ~ Karen advised we would not be a likely recipient for the Sustainable Water Management Initiative (SWMI) Grant. T&H will research other grant options for the remaining I&I (Rt. 32 – 24” main) work and pump station improvements.
Casino Vote ~ Palmer voted no on the casino referendum. Karen at T&H did however provide an estimate for a potential Route 32 water main replacement. Replacing the existing six inch cast iron with new 16” ductile iron is estimated to cost $1.98 million including the use of controlled density fill (CDF) and a full width overlay upon project completion. The Commission thought this price to be very expensive but working on a MASSDOT controlled road always is.
Palmer Waste Water Meeting~ The Commission attended their yearly meeting with Palmer, Monday October 28th to discuss upcoming capital projects and costs. The meeting went well with no surprises. Projects for FY2014 include new pumps, motors and valves for PS #2 and new garage doors and water pump at the plant. Fy2015 will include new pumps, motors, valves and generator at PS #1.
Generator Hook-up~ Lagrant electric submitted the lowest price for the manual transfer switch installation and have been given the notice to proceed.
Paving Policy~ Craig and the Commission discussed the process involved when the Highway Department repaves a road in Town. Presently, the cost of raising the water and sewer structures (valve boxes-manhole frames) in the street is included in John’s repaving projects and funded through Chapter 90 (State) monies. It’s important the Townspeople know how closely and well our departments work together when these projects take place.
Wireless Service ~ Recently Craig switched his Department owned cell phone provider from AT&T to Verizon for $30/month, which is approximately a $40/month savings from AT&T. The department also pays $35/month for two emergency pagers. Currently we are one pager short which would be an extra $15/month. As an alternative, Verizon Wireless offers a $160/month phone plan which would include two flip phones each at $30/month and two smart phones including data each at $50/month. Currently all Department field employees use their wireless phone to make and receive work related calls many times during the day. It is so much more convenient, productive and efficient and allows much better communication between us. Jan’s smart phone currently has all of the sewer pdf
maps on it which are viewed when out in the field. Jan takes scans of water and sewer service drawings from the books in the office into his phone for use out in the field. In the future the smart phones will be able to access our GIS maps to see street valve and manhole locations in the field. Commissioner DeMaio agrees smart phones are becoming indispensable today, Doug agrees this is progress, and also useful for station coverage and weekend calls as long as there is a policy in place to prevent going over the shared data plan. The Commission has agreed to include this expense in the FY2015 Budget.
Department Activity
Columbia Gas ~ gas mains have been laid on Washington and State Street. Proposed house services have also been marked out and surprisingly we don’t have any conflicts so far.
Margaret Street Private Water Service ~ Craig has been going back and forth since July with the homeowner about a hose connection before the meter that needs to be removed. A certified letter was sent with a November 14, 2013 deadline.
Service Line Replacements ~ a section of water service at 167 Palmer Rd. was replaced. A new service was tapped to 9 Bridge St. removing it from the 11 Bridge St line which is being remodeled. The Bank hydrant was relocated; the service to the demolished old house/shop was cut and capped off at the main.
NEXT MEETING: The next meeting has been set for Wednesday, December 4, 2013 at 6:30p.m.
ADJOURN: A motion was made by Paul and seconded by Joe to adjourn at 7:30 p.m. Motion passed unanimously.
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Paul C. DeMaio, Clerk
cc: Selectmen
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