Capital Improvement Committee

CITY OF LACONIA PLANNING BOARD CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT SUB-COMMITTEE MEETING Tuesday, October 18, 2016 Meeting Minutes Call to Order: Chairman Bill Contardo called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM. In attendance were: Ava Doyle, Mike Foote, Gail Denio, Ham McClean, Paul Lambert, Robert Hamel, and William Contardo. Staff; Brandee Loughlin, Interim Planning Director and Wendy Patterson, Zoning Technician/Recording Secretary. Mr. Contardo explained that there have been some additions to the C.I.P spreadsheet and asked the Committee if they would like to hear the new information. MOTION: Mr. Hamel moved to accept the additional item to be heard regarding the Code Enforcement vehicle. Seconded by Gail Denio. Motion carried unanimously in favor. Copies of previous years approved budget were presented as well as copies of the items added to the DPW CIP which is in addition to the previous budgetary request. Robert Hamel stated that under Parks and Recs in 2017, that the Leavitt tennis courts and bleachers at Memorial park were funded. Ava Doyle asked if the playground revitalization was done. Mr. Hamel said that it was. Bill Contardo stated that this meeting will have Parks and Rec and DPW speak regarding their requests. Kevin Dunleavy, Director of Parks and Recreation, thanked the Committee for the opportunity to make the presentation for the upcoming requests. His focus will be on future requests but also asks that he be able to touch on the next years items that are being prioritized. One of the new items that have been included in the program for 2017/2018 is the Community Center heating system repairs. He explained that there is an oil hot steam system at the Laconia Senior Center and he is not aware of any previous maintenance on the steam traps. Mr. Hamel said that he thought it was converted to gas and Kevin said no. Bill asked when the last time was done. Kevin stated that he did not know. He is looking to have the system surveyed to know what is needed for repairs and the overall system. Other new items for Parks and Rec: Two items have been combined in the 2019/2020 request, replacement of Bond Beach Bathhouse and sewerage system disposal system, as the projects can be done at the same time. It is anticipated that there would be a large savings in doing it that way. 1 Under the new requests 2021-2022, item #3 request for a field grooming tractor. It is a special piece of equipment used to groom athletic skin areas, beaches and some walking trails. Currently there is an equivalent model that is a 2005 that has been good but will need to be replaced based on the amount of use due to all of the ballfields. It will have different attachments that will help with efficiency. Request #5 is for the Smith track refurbishment based on an estimated timeframe of the installer of when the track will need to be refurbished. It is not torn up but a coating needs to be applied to cover the wear and tear. H. McClean stated that last year there was lengthy discussion about how much the school uses the facilities and their reimbursement rates and how the accounting may be changed to have the school budget show the cost of maintenance. Kevin said their department is not reimbursed but has received some lump sum funds from the school budget of around $5000 to help with fertilizer. He stated that at this time there is no formal agreement or memorandum to work this out. H. McClean asked if this is between him (meaning Kevin Dunleavy) and the school or if the City Council gets involved. Kevin Dunlevy believes that at some point the City Council will get involved. H. McClean stated that as the population is aging and the school population is decreasing that more and more the fields are being used primarily for the schools and not the public. K. Dunleavy said that for budgeting reasons it is important to know who is fiscally responsibly. Parks and Rec has implemented a work order system that is helping to track the costs for specific activities whether related to the school or youth sports. H. McClean inquired if the school make requests for repairs. Kevin said the school will tell them if there is an issue but it does not make a formal request. The facilities have always been under the parks and rec as the school district does not have adequate facilities. The school department, when they improved Bobotas field, Opechee, and Leavitt, utilized grant funding to assist in the upgrading of them. H. McClean said it seems better and more consistent to have those that are utilizing the facilities and creating the costs for maintenance to pay for those because it is not an accurate accounting. Mr. Hamel said there has been a lot of discussion about this in the past but Kevin’s crew has taken over Bobotas field and the smaller field which is primarily used by the schools. The sprinkler system at Opechee has been expanded and part of the fields are actually school property that we maintain. H. McClean said it is not his intent to take away from the schools but that there should be some maintenance reimbursement. He then asked if the schools have a cheaper borrowing rate. Mr. Hamel said it is all negotiated through the city by bonds with all major projects. Bill Contardo asked how Park & Rec got the bigger scope of work. K. Dunleavy said that it is his knowledge that Parks and Recs has always maintained the fields and the only new item is the lower field below Bobotas field. B. Contardo asked how the youth programs are. Kevin said the City supports the youth league by field maintenance and they (the leagues) pitch in for field paint. Non-town user fees are also assessed so that that out of town participants have to pay a surcharge to use the field. He is guessing that may be $20,000 over the past three years. Kevin said that for 2022/2023 there are three new items; Item #1 tractor replacement to replace a multipurpose tractor for snow removal, spreading of gravel, to groom beaches, and for some field maintenance. It is used year round. Item #2 Endicott renovation, of the picnic areas, grass, fencing , bench replacement, some paving and picnic table replacement. Ava Doyle inquired if the special fund that has accumulated can be used. Kevin said there is a reserve account in roughly the amount of $25,000 of the parking fees for the beach. Kevin said there is also a reserve account from the sale of beach stickers that he said it is in about the $40-$50,000 range 2 and some was used for sand mitigation studies. H. McClean asked if that is still in progress. Kevin said yes, it is broken up in to 2 phases to see potential costs and then the engineering phase. DES wanted required a scientific answer as to what was happening to the beaches and some measures to mitigate. He anticipated it would be a 5 year project and they are around that time frame. Ava Doyle asked if when that project is completed, could the funds or bonding be combined. Kevin said yes. He also put in for some bathhouse renovations. He finds that is more palatable for the public when this is broken up in two phases. Ava Doyle said the TIF funds should be paying for the Lakeside Ave projects and inquired if this could also be a TIF project . Mike Foote asked how the vegetation and darkness of the bridge is handled. Kevin said that there is some residual lighting from the parking lot but more needs to be done. Item #3 is the Wyatt Park court reconstruction, it was resurfaced with a skim coat on the courts several years ago but it is anticipated that they are nearing a total reconstruction in the near future. Mr. Hamel asked if there are still funds in that account. Kevin believes there is approximately $6-7,000.00 in the account. Mr. Hamel said it may be good to carry it forward for that project. Kevin Dunleavy stated that he would like to review the request for the upcoming year. 2017- 2018, beach facilities drainage design phase, similar to what is being experienced at the Weirs, Bartlett, Bond, Opechee Point and Opechee Cove are a particular problem for runoff and this needs to be looked in to because there have been more and more complaints. To replenish the beach, DES requires that design work and research be done to implement a plan. Kevin Dunleavy said that right now he feels the beaches are acceptable but he would like to start the process of design work and what may be implemented to help keep the beaches in place. Bill Contardo inquired if there is still a goose problem. Mr. Dunleavy stated that they are. Wildlife services has been contacted because they (the geese) are migratory so therefore they are a federal issue. In previous years they have suggested flare guns and other tactics, some of which work and some that do not. Now they will look at a permit to have them removed. They are classified as “resident geese” and the same flocks return year after year. He said Boston has the same issue and he is confident the USDA will help to harvest when they are molting at the end of June. This is an expense that will be passed to the City but it does need to be done sooner than later. Ava Doyle inquired what is done with the harvested birds. Kevin Dunleavy said that as he understands, they are netted, gassed and given for consumption but he is not sure that is human or animal consumption. Gail Denio asked if any of the beaches are a safety issue. Kevin Dunleavy stated that they are not at this time but the beach quality will become worse and will wear down to rock and dirt. We are trying to prevent erosion. Bill asked if the $80,000 is a firm price. Kevin said it is an estimate and he is assuming the costs will be $20,000.00 per beach. Bill Contardo clarified that the drainage design is the $80k. Kevin Dunleavy explained that some of the beaches will cost a little more for the elements for designing drainage swales and such. Bill Contardo asked what the $200k proposed is for. Kevin Dunleavy stated that is an estimate for approximately $50k per beach for construction and it is difficult to know the price exactly until we know what is recommended and what will be permitted. Parks and Rec is also suggesting that a pedestrian walkway be done from Main St to the middle school and along the edge of Smith Track. This will help to cut down on the damage to the fields and track by the people cutting across them. This is especially bad during the muddy season. B. Contardo asked who would plow the walkway. K. Dunleavy stated that he has not asked DPW yet. Another issue is the fencing on 3 North Main from the cove area and down the road. The 6’ chain link fence is in disrepair and Parks and Rec would like to install ornamental fencing, like the black rail fencing in the downtown area, so it would be aesthetically pleasing and safe. Bill Contardo asked about lighting in that area as he feels it is subdued. Kevin Dunleavy Confirmed that there is no lighting in the park and he is not sure how much of a need there is. Bill Contardo stated that unbecoming activities are happening in the darker areas and maybe by putting up lighting it would prevent some of this from happening. Kevin said some lighting was put up in Wyatt park and this is something that can be looked at. The basketball courts at Tardif and Sandborn are single courts and they would like to put in striping for tennis and pickle ball and maybe basketball. They are also exploring a centralized irrigation control system, there are over 20 irrigation heads now and this would allow remote access to control the systems as well being able to troubleshoot the systems so that they can find what needs to be done sooner. A contractor gave a bid that included changing control boxes to be accessed remotely whether through data link, phone line, or computer. Kevin said this could be done a little at a time. Mr. Hamel asked where the irrigation project is at, Kevin said the bids are in and it will be started within two weeks and he can work through November. Pricing came in about $1000 over budget but will be absorbed in the operating budget. Department of Public Works – Wes Anderson spoke on behalf of the DPW and presented a powerpoint slide show. Laconia parking garage is still in place on the CIP with no amount until an estimate comes through and Lakeside Ave has been removed from the CIP. The Court Street reconstruction is presently slated to be $1.5 million but as there is big issue with the design firm he suspects that project will be $2.17 million. H. McClean asked why the difference in estimate. Wes said as a general rule you add 10% for increases per year. We have four bridge projects, two have been picked up by the state of NH, Court and Academy street that is a cost share program, state pays 80% we pay 20%. Messer Street inspection on 2016 shows we have decking and abutment problems, the firm that did the study said $140k for design work and the city portion will be $28k. Soil and pavement consulting services; in house the core samples are being done and he has requested $15k for this to be done for the sub soil testing. Mr. Hamel asked if UNH can help in any way, Wes will look in to this and see if they have the equipment. Mr. Anderson explained that the Public Works building has a lot of settlement. There were 4 core samples as to where salt shed building could be placed and three of them were not good areas. It is suspected that the soil underneath, peat, is not viable. DPW is asking for $10k to consult with an engineer to see what could be done. Wes said DPW would also like to preserve some documents dating back to late 1800 to early 1900’s. These are the original road surveys and it is estimated that the cost is approximately $14K. He feels it is very important to scan all of the documents in the fire resistant room. Wes said the paper copies will be saved but they will also be digitized. Project updates, Street repairs, and Pavement management program: basically the objective to keep good roads good and not let them get to the point where they are a major cost to fix. They are in process of sealing roads that were paved 1-5 years ago in order to help to mitigate potholes and other issues. They are already doing this with some existing money. It is estimated that the cost will be $50-$60K a year until they catch up. Surface treatments are thin layers of something 4 to keep the pavement fresh. There are other types of overlays and when nothing more can be done then it is road reconstruction. Old North Main St, north of Marshall Court, is a problem, when sewer work was being done they found some issues with the soil. What can be done treatment wise is dependent on what he has in the way of pavement. It may need more stone which increases elevation which means drainage will need to be modified. Bill Contardo inquired how many are in bad shape. Wes said about 1/3 of the streets have minimum if not sufficient bases. Court Street has not been tackled as of yet as they are waiting for traffic to decrease. You will see more and more how they are planning to tackle a true maintenance and management program. Vehicle replacement: Some equipment they are not looking to replace in like kind unless it is something that works well. For example an infrared truck to heat pavement to be brought up and put back down as well as equipment that would help more departments. Another issue that may be of concern is future impact and the price of trucks for Federal emissions changes, another of which is anticipated in 2018. The last Federal change was pollution control for nitrous oxide and it cost about $15,000 an engine for compliance. In regards to the Union Ave retaining wall, the preliminary report is that the wall is safe and some issues are due to poor drainage. Monies are being used for designs and they are waiting for estimates of how much it will cost. H. McClean asked if it could be a share cost with the property owner. Wes Anderson said that we do not have records of who originally built the walls, the city or the property owner. Ham McClean asked if there is room between the right of way and the wall so that we may expand. It was explained that there is a project tomorrow being done by Irwin Marine to stabilize the joint retaining wall. Mr. McClean also asked why this could not be piggybacked with them to do the project all at once because what they are doing is supporting the City’s footing. Wes said the major problem is water flow. Mr. Hamel asked if a metal sheet would be driven in to mitigate. Wes said that may be more expensive. Bill Contardo asked where the water would go. Wes Anderson said he plans to head the water north toward the water facility to drain in to Paugus Bay. Bill Contardo asked if it is a no salt area. Wes said not at this time. Mr. Hamel asked if Irwin has already started construction, Wes said it will start tomorrow. Mr. Hamel asked if that will allow us the three feet we need? Luke Powell said they (Irwin Marine) have been in contact with the city throughout this process. He was on the technical review and gathering field data and such and they DPW could not keep up with the Irwin’s pace of progress. Wes explained that they are changing their grade for driveway and parking area. Mr. Hamel said they are leveling their parking lot. Wes Anderson further explained that their only other option was to raise their building. H. McClean asked if they will do anything to their drainage. Luke said yes, and that they are addressing drainage on their side. Court Street is targeted for 2020 and that will be taken in to consideration when looking at design projects. At this point there is not a construction dollars program. Academy street is slated for year 2022, the abutments are cracking. Hilliard street bridge is a single point of failure as it is the only way to get in to 18 houses so they are asking for $20k this year so we can tell the State we have funded it to get the process moving forward. There are two options for emergency, Baily Bridge and/or put in a large box culvert. Discussion was held on the Morin Road construction demo disposal site. Mr. Anderson stated 5 that he is not sure how many years it was used. He believes that it was last used in 2014 and it’s estimated cost to remediate is $200,000. DPW does store granite curbing there. Questions; Mike Foote asked if the list here is in the order of importance. Mr. Anderson said it is not, the numbers for DPW is just a way of keeping track but it can be put in order of importance. There is no sense in doing a design plan and then not having the money to move forward. Discussion was held on the possibility of hazardous materials under Court Street. Mr. Anderson said that may send the cost up but they will have to deal with DES on what they would want to do. There is a question of the area starting at Durkee Brook to Strafford Oil, of possible contamination. Mr. Hamel inquired if any of the service stations could be held responsible or if this may be eligible for Brownfields funds? Wes Anderson said there is a different fund for these issues. Bill Contardo stated that sidewalk repair and construction comes up every year. Mr. Anderson said that for the long term we should do conceptually what the plan is for the roadways. The other piece to the sidewalks is that if there is an overlay to the road then by ADA law they are required to make the sidewalks meet the road and meet their standards. Bill Contardo stated that there are many people coming before the Planning Board that we allow to put money aside for sidewalks. Wes Anderson is not sure if from a policy side we use the money in that area or if it can be utilized in other areas. Do the developers build the sidewalks first or do they do it after a certain amount of houses were built? Mr. McClean inquired if developers put the money in to a fund for future roads in lieu of building do they have to be used in that area. Bill Contardo stated that we should find out the rules. Mr. Hamel inquired if on the streets without defined sidewalks, when we go in to do reconstruction, would we be looking to put in more sidewalks. Wes Anderson said we will have to do that but it will depend on how much right of way we have. Bill Contardo said the Planning Board should know how much money has been put aside and where it is. Brandee Loughlin stated that she can get that information for next week. Mr. Hamel said that the Council authorized more cameras to be put up at recycling center and inquired if it is known if that has been done, as well as the one by Memorial Park. Wes Anderson said he knows game cameras have been put out. They will be placed in multiple locations. Brandee spoke on behalf of the proposed truck for Code Enforcement and thanked the Committee for hearing the late submission. Ms. Loughlin explained that the truck is in bad shape and is in with the mechanic to see what can be done for now. It is 13 years old and has 80k miles on it. The truck is used every day in the city for inspections. Some complaints are that it slips out of drive and in to neutral as well as some grinding noises in the front. The size of the truck has been suitable until recently but now that building permits are picking up it is used more and the Planning Department also uses it. The seat is coming apart with parts poking through. Mike Foote asked if this is the Ford Ranger. B. Loughlin said that it is. Mr. Hamel asked if it has to be a truck? Brandee Loughlin said yes and that there would also be a request for a locked tool box as the Code Enforcement Officer does go out with equipment for use in inspections. Mike Foote inquired if it will be a 2 wheel or 4 wheel drive truck. Brandee Loughlin stated that the Code Enforcement Officer is not going on difficult to access sites and usually is on roads that have already been cut in. If on the Planning end they are going to a site that would need 4 wheel drive 6 vehicle we would try to team up with DPW to get to the sites. H. McClean asked what vehicle the property maintenance clerk uses to drive. Brandee Loughlin stated that he uses the Escapes primarily. Gail Denio asked what is so large that it cannot go in an SUV. Brandee Loughlin said possibly ladders and such. She further stated that she does not know the difference pricewise. The other option is that maybe we can get a truck from another department that they are looking to recycle. H. McClean asked what we did with old cruisers. Mr. Hamel said most got to state auction if they cannot be used in house. Mr. Hamel asked if this will be added to the score sheet, Brandee said yes and she will gather more info. This public comment hearing will be on October 25th. Mike Foote asked if it is put on the Lakes Region Access Channel. Brandee Loughlin said that she can ask that Nancy Brown do that. Bill Contardo said there have been projects that have gotten interest over the years but in general the public does not have many questions. Brandee asked if anyone wanted the new scoring sheets mailed to them, otherwise they will be sent via email. Hardcopies will be available tomorrow and they will also be sent electronically. MOTION: Mr. Hamel moved to adjourn. Seconded by Mike Foote. Motion carried unanimously in favor. Meeting adjourned at 8:15pm Respectfully submitted, Wendy L. Patterson Recording Clerk 7