Correspondent
HARVARD — The only “major changes” in the fiscal year 2009 Department of Public Works (DPW) budget are a 4.5 percent increase in salaries and higher costs at the transfer station, said Director Richard Nota.
Nota explained each item at the Dec. 18 Board of Selectmen meeting.
“Basically, there are no new hires or new programs It’s a flat budget,” he said.
He does, however, recommend equipment purchases for this fiscal year that include a medium-duty dump truck. The 1997 model in use now has a cracked frame and rusted body that will continue to cost money to repair if it’s not replaced, he said. He’d also like to replace the compactor at the transfer station, which is nearing the end of its life.
Another recommended buy is a waste oil heater that would use discarded — free — motor oil to heat the mechanics bay in the DPW building.
“It would pay for itself in a year,” Nota said.
Outlining a five-year plan to upgrade facilities, Nota said the deteriorating floor in the building needs a coat of epoxy — preferably within a year or so — to save it. The job would cost about $40,000, he said.
A similar job was done on the fire station floor last summer. It cost more than $22,000, said fire Chief Robert Mignard.
Another item on Nota’s repair list is a 10,000 above-ground tank at the highway barn’s fuel depot. Resurfacing it with electrostatic paint would stop rusting and cost about $15,000, said Nota.
Last on the list, salt shed walls are “blowing out” due to material that falls between them.
Replacing plywood and installing a shield to stop spills could be done in-house, he said. Materials would cost about $5,000.
