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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCapital Improvements 01/14/1991CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS MINUTES ri .,'r /E -D ti January 14, 1991 91 JAN 21; Psi i= 24 PRESENT: Chairman Quinn, Barbara Hagg, Edward Tartufo, Amos Robinson, Frank Guardabascio, Philip Smith, Robert Gurek j}l N,, It�_.0 HASSACHMSETTS Joan Cutillo, Acting Town Manager Shaun Burke, Director of Planning and Development Lawrence Gallagher, Town Accountant Gerry St. Hallaire Robert Swanson, Town Engineer/Director Department of Public Works 1. Meetino called to order at 7:45 P.M, Bob Swanson- Explanation of financing of E. Mansfield sewer alternatives. Barbara Hagg - Is the Town eligible for grant funding? Bob Swanson - No, grants are not available, but, low interest or not interest loans may be available. Joan Cutillo - Explanation of betterment and suggest that a portion go on tax rate however the rations have riot been determined, Selectmen need to make policy deci- sions. #8:05 P.M. - Chairman Quinn entered the meeting. Barbara Hagg - How many homeowners are effected? Are tie-ins mandatory? Bob Swanson- Four hundred and eighty apartments at Bristol Arms are under the direction from the Attorney General's Office to get sewer. Ninety Form A lots, seventy subdivision lots, four lots, and the Canoe River Campground. There is a to- tal of six hundred and fourty-four lots. Barbara Hagg - Can a betterment district be placed on undeveloped land? Joan Cutillo - Yes, but it depends on the type of betterment based on either fron- tage or number of units. Barbara Hagg - Would three and one-half million dollars effect the bond rating? Joan Cutillo - Yes, it would still count as debt. Bob Swanson - All options shoat $50,000 to $70,000 per year on tax rate. Phil Guardabascio - Can we force new units to tie in? Joan Cutillo - i am concerned about postponing the project to another time. If we don't get moving soon, the apartment units may not tie into sewer according to plan. Bob Swanson - I am concerned about the apartments using a force main to tie into East Street by School Street. If that happens we will lose the ability to change a betterment to four hundred eighty units. Chairman Quinn - Will the sewer run east out to Easton? Why not do sewering in two phases? Up to Eastman Street in Phase I and out to Eastleigh Estates North in Phase Il. Bob Swanson - Does this policy discussion go beyond the charge of this committee? Should this go to the Selectmen? Chairman Quinn - Bring this to the attention of the Board of Selectmen. We need a plan to encourage developers to participate. Joan Cutillo - We need to talk about the difference between CDM's number and the number used in the plan. Bob Swanson - The pump station may need an upgrade. Joan Cutillo - Would you like a new East Mansfield proposal showing 2 million dollars in 1991-92 and 1.5 million dollars in 1992-93? Frank Guardabascio - Do numbers in the proposal reflect the 7867,000 already avail- able, and can we spend the 78673000 already voted? Chairman Quinn - Concensus okaying the resubmission of revised sewering of East Mansfield. Well System Bob Swanson - We are already using Dustin Well 20 percent of the time. If we have a dry year, we will be using more water from the Dustin Well. Gerry St. Hillaire - This past year has been the highest use rate since 1991 - 2.34 mgd. The devel.ojment of the Ash property could result in taking Dustin and A1ber- tini off line. There could be a savings on the filtering system by going ahead with the Ash Property. Joan Cutillo - Do we have to do either project this year? Bob Swanson - Even with the high iron test, the consultant says that we could go ahead without a filtering system and add a filter later if needed. Phil Guardabascio - The issue incudes Albertini Wells in addition to the Dustin Well and Ash Well, Gerry St. Hillaire - West Mansfield has had iron problems for years. We could run the entire Town on Cate Springs, Witch Pond, and the Ash Property. Chairman Quinn - How much time do you need to get additional details on pumping? Gerry St. Hillaire - At least a week. Ed Tartufo - Include full capacity pumping, current pumping, and revised projection of population changes. Gerry St. Hallaire - We may be able to eliminate the expensive lime system at Dustin and Albetini if we go with Cate Springs, Witch Pond, and Ash Property. Joan Cutillo - Water treatment over the next five years is six million dollars. If we look at the total picture, we are suggesting thirty million in bonding over the next five years. We need to get more realistic and get away from borrowing. Phil Guardabascio - Look at prior years and in other communities without an indica- tion of the realistic cost, the idea is to get a number out there. Maybe we should re-evaluate some of these proposals and try to assign more realistic figures to projects for the current year and next year. Ed Tartufo - We shouldn't stick to the plan as it appears five years out. Lets do this year and next year. Lists the projects we have to do this year. Frank Guardabascio - We could look at the capacity triggers for projects. When we reach a certain capacity figure, we fund new projects. Barbara Hagg - Increase in usage correspond to flushing program. Gerry St. Hallaire - No, only a little bit ahead of water and sewer projections. May wish to look at water and sewer as enterprise accounts. Eouipment Replacement Larry Gallagher - Equipment replacement program is not working. Some departments are spending more than others while they are all contributing the same amount. Water and sewer is an example of paying in.and not getting equipment, approximately $70,000. We should put the money back into an account and use the tax rate. Gerry St. Hallaire - Lease/purchase program inflates the cost of eqipment. Phil Guardabascio - Demands on funds have been so great that that account has not really functioned the way it was designed. Larry Gallagher - Can't keep buying out of accounts without putting additional money back into them. Gerry St. Hallaire - We may need an enterprise account in water and sewer. Ed Tartufo - Should we vote an enterprise system for water and sewer? Joan Cutillo - No choice on equipment this year other than raise and appropriate. Cannot support $90,000.00 out of rates. We could purchase one price of equipment out of surplus. Joan Cutillo - Discussion of vehicles. Barbara Hagg - Suggest we give $20,000 to Police and move $64,000 for Fire Depart- ment back one year in order to complete the Police Communications first. Chairman Quinn - Priority should be Police, Fire, than Civil Defense, in that order. Ed Tartufo - Why not phase the Fire Department's communications system? 2 Bob Gurek - What is the point of raising funds each year if it can't be carried over into the next fiscal year. Consensus - O.K. on $50,000 for fire truck. Bob Swanson - One -Ton dump with plow being proposed for safety reasons. O.K. - High pressure cleaner - existing rad type cleaner is twenty years old . The cost for a new cleaner would be $27,000.00. O.K. - Trench box - The aluminum trench box, is lighter than steel and could be moved by a back hoe. O.K. - Calcium chloride - could be put on water account. Joan Cutillo - The School Department memo states $100,000.00 Bob Gurek - Best information so far is $88,000.00. Joan Cutillo - Please explain $60,000.00 for the plan. Bob Gurek - $60,000.00 is based on 10 percent of a million dollar project used for design of a new heating system. Ed Tartufo - Is it possible to phase in a heating system? Bob Gurek - Not sure, I will loot: into it. We are looking for a dual heating system, both gas and oil. The cost projection of $800,000 to $1,000,000 goes back several years, but the cost, remains approximately the same today. Joan Cutillo - Is a dual heating system more expensive? Bob Gurek - The dual system boiler/burner portion is approximately one third more expensive. The flexibility of using one system or the other to take advantagge of cost of fuel. A $60,000 energy cost is approximate Chiarman Quinn requested that Lorilee Fish -St. Hallaire and Richard Lewis be present at 7:30 P.M. at the next Capital Improvements meeting --January 28, 1991. 2. Adjournment - 10:30 P.M.