Clarksburg Bridge Bid High; Town Hires 2 Police Officers
 Town officials are hoping to do more to improve the front of Town Hall. |
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — The third round of bid solicitations for the Gates Avenue bridge saw the price go up by $30,000.
Town officials have been struggling to find a solution for the failing culvert that connects a half dozen homes to Houghton Street.
When the first round of bidding came in too high, the town tried bidding again, receiving a bid of $525,000. That was still outside the town's maximum of $380,000, so a third bid was tried in hopes that a company could come within the parameters.
However, the single bid received from Caracas Construction Corp.of Holyoke came in at $557,765.
The initial estimate nearly three years ago had been $114,000; the state Department of Environmental Protection's insistence on using a costly open-bottom culvert to replace the old boiler tank that's there has quadrupled the price. The board took the latest bid under advisement. Town Administrator Carl McKinney said he has been in contact with the state Department of Transportation in seeking a solution.
In other business, the board affirmed the hire of two new part-time officers, technically "reserve intermittent" officers, to fill two open spots, and confirmed B.J. Church as the new building inspector after reviewing her references.
Police Chief Michael Williams introduced Amalio Jusino and Robert DeBlois to the board. Jusino is assistant manager of North Adams Ambulance Service and a former firefighter and Williamstown officer; DeBlois, of Savoy, has been working for the North Adams Police Department.
"I think they we have two great candidates here," said Select Board member William Schrade.
The board also discussed the likely lifting of the state's net metering cap for solar, which has affected the three solar projects being planned in town.
"Of the three, only one got in the queue under the old net metering," said McKinney. "Krutiak's got in and the other two are waiting."
He said the town was in line to get about $15,000 in payment in lieu of taxes for each site, with the possibility of more.
"It's more beneficial to the community and it's a new revenue source," he said. "And we could obtain the credits to use those."
Schrade asked if would be possible for the town to put its own array on the capped landfill. McKinney said the town had 88 acres there but it would require a forest management plan and some cutting.
He said the site could support an array as well as hiking trails to support more recreational use.
"Wit the new Cross Road, you'll have more space for parking, hiking, and walking," McKinney said, referring to the reconstruction of Cross Road that will occur later this summer.
The board also accepted a donation to the Town Hall Facade from David Davignon and approved a request from the Veterans of Foreign Wars to remove the overgrown bushes in the front. Members asked if more could be done to improve the front of the building.
McKinney said he had locked in good prices on fuel for this winter and believed there would be enough in that line item to do some things.
"Within the Town Hall operations, there will be additional dollars in the budget," he said. "We should be in good shape to get some things done."
Tags: bidding, bridge project, police, road work,
