Published in the March 29, 2016 edition.
By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — The town will ask voters at the May 2 Annual Town Meeting to approve $2,095,323 in capital spending in fiscal year 2017. Capital Planning Committee (CPC) chairman Shaun Margerison presented the requested capital budget at last night’s meeting of the Board of Selectmen.
He said that the CPC received capital funding requests from town departments totaling $7.2 million and through their process of prioritization had arrived at the final recommended total of just over $2 million.
Margerison said that the lion’s share of the capital budget, $920,000, would be spent on the town’s buildings. He highlighted some of the areas that the CPC was recommending for attention.
The CPC allocated $125,000 for work on heating systems at various town-owned buildings, plus another $125,000 for HVAC systems at the High School.
Also at the high school, the FY 2017 capital plan requests $50,000 for a fire panel upgrade, $40,000 for flooring replacement, $35,000 for window replacement, $25,000 for ceiling replacement and $7,500 for interior door replacement. Another $40,000 was requested to replace the high school PA system and $6,500 to replace the Doyle intercom system.
At the Greenwood School, the recommendation is for $25,000 for repointing of exterior brick, $25,000 for ceiling replacement and $20,000 for floor tile replacement.
At the Walton School, $5,000 is budgeted for flooring replacement.
At the Dolbeare School, $6,000 is requested for exterior painting and $7,500 for door replacement.
Door replacement at the Woodville School is budgeted at $10,000 and new flooring for the Doyle School was recommended at $6,500.
Window replacement at the Yeuell School is in the capital budget at $5,000.
Phase 2 of a five-year plan to replace the roof of the McCarthy Senior Center is funded at $60,000. Replacement of flooring at the Senior Center was recommended at a cost of $7,000.
The CPC allocated $7,000 for interior painting and repairs at the Public Safety Building and another $7,000 for carpeting replacement.
At Beebe Library, the CPC recommends $24,000 to replace carpeting in the Youth Room, $13,000 for exterior and interior painting and $9,100 for masonry work.
The committee called for $100,000 to be spent on roof repairs at various town-owned buildings as well as $35,000 in security improvements at town buildings.
A total of $565,453 was allocated for prior leases of IT equipment and vehicles for the DPW and Senior Center.
The CPC recommended $30,000 toward a three-year lease/purchase of a new school bus to replace a 1998 International model.
For the DPW, $45,000 toward a five-year lease purchase of new street sweeper to replace a 2006 model was recommended, along with $54,000 for a three-year lease/purchase of a new dump truck/sander to replace a 2000 vehicle. The purchase of a new Toro 5000 Reel Mower was approved at $30,000 to replace a 1999 machine. Another $35,000 was allocated for a lawn sweeper/trailer to replace a 1972 unit and $12,000 was recommended for a Giant Vac with trailer to replace a 1985 model.
The CPC also recommended the purchase of two new police cruisers for a total of $111,500.
The capital budget also includes $100,000 for drainage system/stream cleaning, $40,000 for parking lot upgrades and $30,000 for a study to see if some of the town’s older traffic signals should be replaced.
Other items recommended in the capital budget include a special heavy-duty washer/extractor and dryer for firefighter uniforms ($1,800 matching grant), and replacement of fire protective gear ($2,300 matching grant).
A total of $56,000 was included in the budget to replace the town’s voting machines.
The CPC recommended spending $91,653 on new IT leases during FY 2017 that will be paid in FY 2018.
The Sewer Division capital budget of $217,125 includes replacement of a 2000 Chevy truck ($33,000 shared with the Water Division) and replacement of a 2002 GMC utility truck ($55,000). Prior year leases totaling $49,000 are also in the Sewer Division capital budget, along with $50,000 in system improvements and $30,000 for a generator at the West Park Drive pumping station.
The Water Division capital budget of $223,125 includes prior year leases totaling $49,125, along with $33,000 for a new truck (shared with the Sewer Division) and $50,000 to replace a 2003 Chevy truck with plow. Other highlights of the Water Division capital budget include hydrant replacement ($25,000) and a new generator for the Linden Street pumping station ($45,000).
The Board of Selectmen approved the recommended capital budgets for the town and the Water and Sewer divisions
