Norwood Special Town Meeting Monday Focuses on Capital Projects

NORWOOD, MA - Norwood will hold its upcoming Special Town Meeting on Monday at 6:30 p.m., with a number of capital projects in the town's capital outlay plan under consideration.

General Manager Tony Mazzucco explained the requests in a detailed presentation to the Board of Selectmen at this week's meeting. He received push back, particularly from Selectman Helen Donohue, as to where these projects should be allocated for funding. The discussion took up nearly half of the meeting, which lasted more than two hours.

The meeting can be viewed via this link to Norwood Community Media.

To access documents pertaining to the Special Town Meeting, visit the town's website here.

Many of the projects persented were for replacement of current equipment "at the end of its useful life."

The design of the Washington and Nahatan Street corridor will cost $550,000, according to Mazzucco. The traffic lights there need replacement.

Donohue asked if a couple of companies could be solicited to submit competing plans for the project.

"For the engineering design that we need, you're going to have to pay a company to do that," Mazzucco said. According to the state's procurement laws, projects need to be put out to bid.

When Donohue pressed him on the issue, his response was, "For free?"

"So you want the design for free?" clarified Chair Tom Maloney.

When Donohue said yes, Mazzucco said he would ask contractors if they would be willing to do this work free of charge.

Donohue also spoke against a $4.5 million request to continue a two-year project to clean and reline the town's pipes because she said the water rates would go up. She said that before, pipes were cleaned "at a gentle rate" that did not overburden taxpayers.

Mazzucco said the previous year's allocation was via a $4.5 million bond plus another $630,000. This is part of a seven-year plan, which Mazzucco is 70 to 80 percent complete.

He added that the tuberculation of the pipes is what causes lower water flow and could lead to their rupture. Lining can give the pipes "a new life."

Another request Donohue contested was the $70,000 request for a mini loader vehicle for the Cemetery Division, saying that it should come out of the department's budget.

Mazzucco explained that there is a 3.5 percent expense cap on what could be spent on a project out of a department budget. There are also constraints persented by the Proposition 2 1/2 tax cap. He has been working on having routine repairs worked into the general budget.

"As the operating budget has that flexibility, we would love to do that," he said. Sometimes items such as police vehicles and school transportation vans ablehave been absorbed in the operating budget.

Donohue also quetioned the need for a leaf packer, saying that the current 1995 vehicle is not that old.

Mazzucco said that requests for leaf collection come in all the time, and that these vehicles generally last about 20 years.

Donohue made a motion that the Recreation Department's request for resurfacing the poured rubber at the Murphy Playground be moved to the Community Preservation Committee for Community Preservation Act funding rather than having the money come out of free cash. The motion failed 2-3, with Selectman William Plasko and Donohue in favor.

Selectman David Hajjar said that if the project were removed, it would only give the CPC until November to submit a proposal for funding. He also said the CPC is reluctant to support projects that are for what can be viewed as maintenance.

Plasko said the bylaw may need to be changed about what can be considered under free cash, the minimum ceiling for a project to be considered a capital expenditure, and the role of each committee in the process. The bylaw became outdated with Proposition 2 1/2, he noted.

An expensive project proposed will be the replacement of the HVAC system at the Public Facilities Building at a cost of $4 million. This money will need to be borrowed.

"As the board is aware, the HVAC system has been failing regularly over the past several years," Mazzucco said, noting that the building is about 20 years old and HVAC systems usually have a life expectancy of 15 to 20 years. "We've been able to get it to a reasonably stable condition. But the system was likely poorly designed and undersized for the building that we have."

A new fire engine to replace Engine 2 has a $975,000 price tag, which will be paid for by free cash if approved. Mazzucco said that having another modern engine will make it easier to repair the trucks because the parts can be kept in stock. It is hard to find replacement parts for the older vehicles because they are no longer being made.

A road bond is proposed for $2.8 million. Last year's road bond was put toward the repair of Morningside Drive. This would be part of a five-year plan for road resurfacing and repair each year. By the end of that period, maintenance should be allocated for in the general fund.

Another project that was raised was the replacement of the track and the installation of lighting at the track and football fields at the high school. The Capital Outlay Committee members recently visited the track and agreed that it was not in proper shape.

The football field lights will cost $650,000, which is proposed to be paid for with free cash. The total cost for the track and field replacement and lighting will cost $1.2 million in free cash.

At a recent School Committee meeting, Anne Marie Mazzolla, who serves on both the School Committee and the Capital Outlay Committee, mentioned that concerns were raised to the committee during its site visit about tailgaiting and littering, but the school department was not aware of any recent complaints.

Plasko brought up that a number of requests appear to have been put forth that would usually be prioritized. They also are coming before the board with less than a week before the Special Town Meeting.

"It seems like we're having a rush of every project that every department wants just because they know there's free cash available," he said. "I think there's other, more prudent ways of using some of this free cash."

Smaller projects include:

• A new boiler and gas line for the Balch Elementary School, which would cost $140,000
• Site improvements for Norwood Airport are proposed for $75,000
• A generator for the Council on Aging building at $125,000. The building does not currently have a heating generator.
• Repair of the solar panels on the Norwood High School roof at $30,000
• An existing conditions study on the Morrill Memorial Library at $145,000
• LED lights in several schools and municipal buildings at $140,000
• Low flush toilets and faucets at the elementary schools at $120,000
• Replacement portable radios for the Fire Department at $330,000
• Breathing apparatus for $405,000 in free cash for the balance of the cost. The Fire Department was able to receive federal funding for more than $300,000 of the total.
• Police defense equipment at $22,000
• HVAC and electrical upgrades in the cemetery garage at $70,000
• the lead service assessment in the town's pipes, for $155,000
• a feasibility study for the lower field at the Coakley Middle School field for $30,000
• Modifications at the Elliott Field sport complex at $25,000
• Two school vans at $80,000