BUCKLAND – Road and culvert repairs are planned for Avery Road, Elm Street and North Street. The City Council and Finance Committee voted Monday to allocate about $610,000 for the work.
Heavy rains in early July prompted the city council to declare a state of emergency on Avery Road, blocking traffic between the intersection with Shephard Road and Charlemont Road. Now, after a month of closure, the city is preparing to make repairs.
“It’s been an expensive few months for the city,” said Selectboard Chairman Clint Phillips.
City Manager Heather Butler said that since the City Council declared a state of emergency, the city has been able to draw on some emergency resources, such as $350,000 left over from paving work on Depot Street and the rail yard.
“The state has said we can use the money for Avery Road’s most urgent needs,” she said.
However, using the funds presents some challenges. Butler explained that the city cannot use the $350,000 for non-emergency needs and that the project the money is for cannot receive additional funding from other sources. So if $350,000 is not enough to repair the culverts, repave the road and change the grade to prevent future washouts, the emergency funds cannot be used for that purpose.
Butler suggested that the city split the work on Avery Road into two projects, with Phase 1 being emergency repairs and Phase 2 being stabilization. That way, the $350,000 could be used for the emergency repairs and the city could then consider potential funding opportunities for long-term stabilization. This would make the road passable and shift the focus to preventing further closures.
However, board members agreed that if the money is spent, it should be spent in a way that avoids having to return and repair the road after each storm. They also suggested building a retaining wall.
“If we don’t get it right, we’ll be talking about it again next year,” said Finance Committee Chairman Larry Longford.
How much will it cost to repair and stabilize Avery Road? The city does not yet know.
Anthony Gutierrez of the Buckland Road Authority told the panel he had received bids of $40,000 for two culverts from local contractors, but prices would vary because some were more damaged than others. He said nine culverts needed repairs, with at least two requiring urgent attention. The total cost will not be known until the full scope of the project is clear.
Ultimately, officials agreed to talk to contractors to see if the entire project could be completed for $350,000.
In addition to Avery Road, the Selectboard and Finance Committee agreed that the culverts on Elm Street and North Street also need to be repaired. Butler said the cost estimates for those repairs were $130,000 and $130,275, respectively.
The work on those two roads would not be considered emergency repairs, so the project must be put out to bid. However, the city can tap into its Chapter 90 account, which has a balance of about $381,000. Using the Chapter 90 funds left Buckland with about $120,000 to fund road work and paving projects through next August.
“We get $185,000 a year for Chapter 90,” Butler explained, “so that’s been saved up over a couple of years and we’re going to spend it on these two projects. … It’s August and we’ve got a long way to go before we see another $185,000.”
Board members said the roads need to be addressed soon and that delaying maintenance would only lead to further deterioration and more costly repairs.
“I don’t think we can ignore this,” said Abby Straus, a member of the Finance Committee.
Butler added that she was setting a deadline of November 15 for completion of the work.
Reach Madison Schofield at 413-930-4579 or [email protected].
