Public Works & Facilities Commission

PUBLIC WORKS & FACILITIES COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY JULY 11, 2018 TIME: 7:00 P.M. MUNICIPAL BUILDING ROOM 208 MIDDLETOWN CONNECTICUT Members Present: Councilman Carl. R. Chisem Councilman Sebastian Giuliano Councilman Gene Nocera Councilman Philip Pessina Absent: Councilman Thomas Serra Staff Present: William Russo, Director of Public Works Christopher M. Holden, P.E., Deputy Director of Public Works Others: Allison Barrych, SignPro Chair Chisem opened the Public Works & Facilities Commission meeting at 7:00 P.M. Chair Chisem requested a motion to approve the minutes dated June 21, 2018. Motion to approve the minutes was seconded and approved unanimously. A motion was made to move item 5a, SignPro, to be discussed before item 5b, 2018 Road Bond. PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEMS: At this time, there is no public comment on agenda items. CORRESPONDENCE: a. Thank You Letter – Middlesex Chamber – Director Russo stated that this letter thanks the Public Works Department and the Committee for their assistance with parking, preparations and clean-up at Middletown’s 21st Annual Cruise Night on Main Street. NEW BUSINESS: a. SignPro – Signage for Palmer Field – Director Russo introduced Allison from SignPro for those that have not met her yet. He also mentioned that everything can be purchased through SignPro since it is state pricing; no bidding will be necessary. Allison stated that there are 5 parts to the signage. Two of these signs will be done for the grand opening on Sunday which will be the press box name dedications for Jim and Dana Bransfield. The signs for the football field and the baseball field will be of the same size. These signs will be stud- mounted directly to the building. The seal is in digital print which is 1/8” aluminum letters. The paint will be baked on so there will be no chipping or flaking. All of the letters are individually cut and fabricated so there will be no raceway or studs that will be seen on either. The next phase is the 3 biography plaques for James Branfield, William Pomfret and Bernie O’Rourke. Two signs will be going on the baseball field; one will be at the entrance of Palmer Field on the brick column just before the stands. It is just adjacent to the garden where the bus will be  along with the city plaques. The sign for James Branfield will be directly next to the door for the press box. The Bernie O’Rourke sign location will be decided once the football side is complete. Director Russo stated that the dedication for Jim Bransfield is Sunday, July 15, 2018 at noon. Phil Cacciola will gather a handout for submission to the Council. When the lettering is up, it will be covered. Chris Bransfield will be attending the grand opening to speak on behalf of his father. Chair Nocera will speak along with Phil Cacciola and the Mayor if he attends. In between games, the press box will be dedicated to Jim and Dana Bransfield where the lettering will be unveiled. Director Russo stated that the money is available to pay for these signs. The total cost of the signage is $9,991.50. A motion was made by Councilman Pessina to approve of the invoice for SignPro. Motion was seconded and approved unanimously. b. 2018 Road Bond – Director Russo stated that when the 2018 preliminary road bond lists was put together, many parties were involved including the Engineering Department, the Mayor’s office, this Commission, some of the Superintendents and also the Sidewalk Conformance Inspector. The LED lighting is included under “other” per the discussion from the last Commission meeting. The Commission discussed different roads that need attention. Some of the roads discussed are on previous road bonds that have not been completed as of yet, however, there are plans to do so in the near future. Deputy Director Holden stated that the Saybrook Road project as discussed in the last meeting will go out to bid in a couple of months. The re-construction will begin next summer. Councilman Pessina asked if the construction can begin this fall since it is being perceived as taking a long time to begin. There was a fatality in the past due to the current conditions of the roadway. Director Russo stated that they would love to do everything right away but it is still in the design phase with Cardinal Engineering due to some challenges. If the project goes out to bid now, the pricing will come back very high because people are working. When bids go out in the winter after Christmas, the contractors don’t have all of their work lined up yet and the pricing is favorable when it comes back to the City. Councilman Pessina asked if a commitment can be made that this project be the first one to cut ground after the bidding process. Director Russo stated that since Cardinal Engineering was here last month, we know that they are not ready for any type of bidding or construction as of now. Director Russo stated that Hunting Hill Avenue will be completed on August 6, 2018 before school starts. This project will start at Woodside Circle and will continue on to where the track is at the Woodrow Wilson Middle School. Bow Lane is next up for paving and Hawks Nest Circle will hopefully be repaired this year as well. One of the Councilmen asked when the Main Street Extension bridge will be worked on. Director Russo stated that it gets tricky because it could be owned by the state. A state list can be obtained which will tell which bridges are owned by the City and which ones are owned by the state.  Director Russo stated that if this 2018 Preliminary Road Bond list is approved by this Commission, it will be forwarded on to Finance and Government Commission. It will then go before the Council in August 2018. The Finance Department will need 60 days to advertise any bonds. Councilman Pessina went over the total cost for the bond which is $16,350,975.00. This cost includes the $1,900,000.00 for the LED lighting, the Main Street Extension Bridge which will cost $675,000.00 and other miscellaneous costs such as sidewalks and inspection fees. The total cost for roads alone is $11,589.375.00. Deputy Director Holden brought up DEP Compliance which was on the road bond before. He indicated that this is very helpful if there is a way to have this funded and added to the bond list it would be ample for issues that may need to be addressed in the future. The Commission agreed to move the 2018 Preliminary Road Bond List to the Finance and Government Commission. OLD BUSINESS: a. June 2018 Public Works Overtime Report – The Public Works & Facilities Commission reviewed their June 2018 Public Works Overtime Report. Director Russo stated that the overtime is minimal and that it is mostly call-ins. Chair Chisem asked how the digging up of the drains is going. Director Russo stated that they are working on prepping the roads for paving behind St. Pius Church. Asphalt aprons will be added to the driveways so that they will last through the winter time. The City pays for these and it will hold much better through the seasons. b. June 2018 Building Permits – The Public Works & Facilities Commission reviewed their June 2018 Building Permits. Director Russo stated that the year was closed out with $941,882.00. This includes large projects such as FedEx and Liberty Bank. On Monday alone, 29 permits were taken in. The department is very busy and has not slowed down. OTHER: Councilman Pessina asked about the bumper pad at Butternut Park. He noticed that it is still not against the stone wall. Director Russo stated that he will check into this. Councilman Pessina asked about the MHS parking and traffic since it was supposed to be started on June 21, 2018. Director Russo stated that the radius is dug out and the process is in. They are by the women’s softball field. Garofalo and Saraceno will do the concrete work there. He is confident that the project will be completed well before school begins. Councilman Pessina asked about an email he received from a constituent in reference to Romano Field pertaining to the stairs that come down from Main Street Extension. The stairs are in need of repair and the flag pole is broken. Director Russo stated that this issue may have been the same one that has come up in the past. Little League does not use this flag pole; they put the flag on the batting cages. They were told to get it off of the batting cages and put it back on the pole. He also stated that the stairs are in the works to be replaced. Councilman Pessina brought up the status on the Parent Leadership sign at Butternut Park. Director Russo stated that he is working with Allison from SignPro on this. Her first priority is getting the signs  done for the grand opening at Pat Kidney Field this weekend. As soon as he has information to present, he will bring it to this Commission. Councilman Pessina asked about the Sonoma Woods development on Westfield Street after Lisa Lane. Residents approached him stating that there is a culvert in the area that needs to be cleaned out. Deputy Director Holden stated that this is a private area and that plowing is not even conducted by the City in this area. Councilman Pessina confirmed that the residents stated that the City has responsibility over this since the issue lies above the roadway between Sonoma Woods and the next street up. Director Russo and Deputy Director Holden stated that they will take a look to see if there are any easements to be sure. Director Russo stated that when the development was built, the developer created the culvert and it was part of agreement to be maintained privately. a. June 2018 Monthly Report – Highway Division – The Public Works & Facilities Commission reviewed their June 2018 monthly reports for the Highway Division. b. June 2018 Overtime Report – Parks Division – At this time, there was no Overtime Report for the month of June 2018 available to review for the Parks Division. Director Russo stated that they are at a minimal for overtime in the Parks Division. Little League is winding down and the Legion’s last game is Sunday at the Jim Bransfield dedication. The fields will have to be maintained and switched over to football for the upcoming home games for Vinal and Xavier. Once that is over with, the fields will have to be maintained and switched over for fall sports. The hardball kids and women’s softball will be sent over to Pat Kidney Field and the men’s softball will be sent to Moody School. The soccer fields will then begin maintenance after the summer sports are over with. Councilman Pessina wanted to know how to attract tournaments to the City now that Palmer Field is completed. Director Russo stated that the CIAC is thrilled and that he has feelers out regarding tournaments. The Legion did not bid the state for the regionals, however, they love the new renovations so they will bid the state for next year. He is trying to have the tennis finals played on the premise as well because of the new tennis courts built at Wesleyan University. PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS: As there was no further discussion, a motion was made to end the meeting. Motion was seconded and approved unanimously. The Public Works & Facilities Commission meeting adjourned at 7:47 P.M.