DALTON, Mass. — The selectmen agreed to explore an addition to the Dalton Division Road Project that would include a sewer line 14 properties could potentially tap into.

 

During Monday night's meeting, the select board voted to authorize Town Manager Tom Hutcheson to utilize American Rescue Plan Act funds to pursue engineering that would add a sewer line to the Dalton Division Road project. 

 

Engineer Fuss and O'neil estimated that completing the sewer line would cost between $370,000 and over $400,000. 

 

This project was authorized for funding in 2016 by the Metropolitan Planning Organization but was pushed down the Transportation Improvement Plan list due to incomplete engineering. The town is now in the engineering phase with construction projected to start in 2027. 

 

Resident RoAnn Wendling, who spoke during the meeting, said the addition of a sewer line is not new. She said it was brought before a previous iteration of the select board who, at the time, agreed with the addition. 

 

Wendling said she understood that money was tight in town and that the town had other priorities. But she felt  $400,000  was reasonable considering how it would benefit residents. Also, it would be difficult and wasteful to install the sewer line after the road was completed.

 

Select board member John Boyle agreed with Wendling's sentiment and said it was important that the engineering for this project be completed in tandem with the engineering of the main project. 

 

Wendling added that she felt frustrated that the agreement from a few years ago was not clearly recorded or, in some cases, remembered.

 

She said she felt residents were being  "penalized because somebody didn't do what they were supposed to do." 

 

 She added that the delay was also a concern because construction costs have increased.

 

Select Board Chair Joe Diver agreed that the project fell through the cracks during a previous administration. He said the sewer line ultimately was put to the side due to a lack of documentation and money available.

 

"The Dalton Division Road oversight, when that was approved in 2015, completely fell through the leadership cracks. That should have never ever happened, and we had to fight to keep it on" Select Board Chair Joe Diver said. "..."It's not that you don't have supporters. It's the history of where we are, and then how we get the funding to go do that work. I think we all agree that in  2027, 2028 we'll reconstruct the road. It makes logical sense to do it. It's how and when we fund it, and then, how do we then make that all happen."

 

There are 14 houses that would be impacted by the additional sewer line. Of the 14 houses along this line, 10 indicated an interest in connecting.

 

To connect, residents would have to pay $500. To actually connect to the line, property owners would have to pay an additional $75 per foot. 

 

Without engineering, the town did not have firm numbers to base the project on. The board held off on discussing how they would allocate the funds needed to complete the project. 

 

Engineering is slated to cost approximately $37,000. This is based on the estimated amount the project would cost. A typical engineering fee is 10 percent of the cost of the project.

 

Once engineering is complete, the select board would seek authorization from the town to allocate the funds. This could include allocating funds through the sewer rate or going before town meeting.