Public Works & Facilities Commission

PUBLIC WORKS & FACILITIES COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY May 12, 2021 TIME: 6:30 P.M. Via WebEX.com MIDDLETOWN CONNECTICUT Members Present: Councilman Gene Nocera Councilman Ed McKeon Councilman Philip Pessina Councilman Darnell Ford Members Absent: Councilman Edward Ford Jr. Staff Present: William Russo, Director of Public Works Christopher M. Holden, P.E., Deputy Director of Public Works Others: Michael Doherty- SLR International Corporation (formerly Milone & MacBroom) Ken Skormo- Middletown Fire Department Alarm Technician Catherine Lechowicz- Director of Recreation and Community Services Paul Pizzo- Landmark Architect Donald Fisco- Deputy Director of Water and Sewer Bryan Skowera- Director of Information Systems Councilman Nocera opened the Public Works & Facilities Commission meeting at 6:30 P.M. Councilman Nocera requested a motion to approve the minutes dated April 14, 2021. Councilman McKeon made a motion. The motion was seconded by Councilman Pessina and passed unanimously. PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEMS: CORRESPONDENCE: Jennifer Kleindienst emailed Director Russo and Deputy Director Holden in response to item 6b on the agenda. She learned at the last Clean Energy Task Force meeting that the Woodrow Wilson Middle School is being fast tracked so it can open in late 2021 or early 2022. She is concerned that such an expedited schedule might cut corners in the realm of sustainability. She would like to have CETF engaged in the process. The CETF was dismayed that Beman Middle School did not incorporate sustainability planning into the original budget, such that the school now has many sustainable features but will still ne reliant on fossil fuels and contributing negatively to climate change. NEW BUSINESS: a. Muscle Car Club – The President of RT/66 Cruises Car Club is requesting permission to use Harbor Park June 12, 2021, August 14, 2021 and September 11, 2021.The Muscle Car Club rely totally on donations. The proceeds from the show’s go to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. Councilman Nocera voiced his concerns with the ongoing construction at Harbor Park. He is concerned that someone can get hurt. Councilman Nocera asked that move to approve with added security measures for the safety of the public due to the current construction at Harbor Park. Further discussion ensued. Councilman Pessina made a motion. Councilman Ford seconded the motion and passed unanimously. b. The Garage Guys Annual Car Show-Councilman- Brian Harrell comes before the Public Works Commission to ask if the Garage Guys can hold their annual memorial car show at Palmer Field, August 21, 2021, rain date August 22, 2021. Councilman Ford made a motion. Councilman McKeon seconded the motion and passed unanimously. c. Scope of Services, Fee Proposal Veterans Memorial Park, and Pool Improvements- Michael Doherty from SLR International Corporation, formerly Milone & MacBroom states to the commission that officially we have not moved forward with the project. The scope of Services and Fee Proposal has been given to the commission members for their review. We are waiting for our contract with the City of Middletown to be approved. The subtotal of the scope of services are $ 385,400.00.Further discussion ensued. Councilman McKeon made a motion. Councilman Pessina seconded the motion and passed unanimously. d. Odd Fellows Roof Replacement-Bill Lardi Assistant Building Official has obtained two quotes for the replacement of the roof at Oddfellows Playhouse, 128 Washington St. New England Roofing and Masonry quote came in as $ 58,466.00 plus a $ 3000.00 allowance for the removal and replacement of rotted roof deck materials. Mike Turner quote came in as $ 38,620.00 plus a $ 3000.00 allowance for the removal and replacement of rotted roof deck materials. Both contractors are listed on State bid list. Bill Lardi recommends going with Mike Turner. A separate quote from B&G Mechanical to remove and reinstall the eight roof top units, which needs to be added to the above quotes. e. Building Security for Green St.- In the midst of planning the technology needs for the Youth Services Bureau at 51 Green St Art Center, the Department of Technology Services discovered and identified insuffient building security features and the Tech Department has identified a severe missing component of an all paging system. Should an emergency emerge, there is not an in place system capable of alerting all the offices. Both the City of Middletown’s Technology Services Department and the Board of Education’s Technology Services IT department have worked together and identified a solution. The solution will include an Overhead Paging System that will consist of integration into both the City Network and Public School Network. These needs meet the guidelines for projects eligible for Local Capital Projects Improvement Program funds, costing $ 8,500.00. Further discussion ensued. Councilman Pessina made a motion. Councilman McKeon seconded the motion and passed unanimously. f. Request to replace fence at Macdonough School on Pease Ave near baseball diamond- Damian SH Reardon Principal of Macdonough School sent an email to Director Russo regarding the poor condition of the cyclone fence that runs along Pease Ave by the baseball diamond. It is broken in spots and very rusty. He states that many children walk by the fence on a daily basis and he worries about someone getting hurt on it. He also states that it looks bad. Director Russo states to the Commission that Atlas is on State bid and the replacement falls under Park Bond so he will have it replaced by August 2021 if the Commission supports the repair. A proposal from Atlas came in with a total of $ 11,686.24. Councilman Pessina made a motion. Councilman McKeon seconded the motion and passed unanimously. g. Permission to repair Sidewalks-Funds are needed to address the sidewalks that are non-road bond sidewalks. It is impossible to know when a sidewalk that is not on a road bond is going to need repair. These funds would be used when an emergency repair arises. h. Install of Lake Aerators at Butternut Park and Ron McCutcheon Park-It is necessary for the City of Middletown office of Public Works Department to address install Lake Aerators at both Ron McCutcheon Park and Butternut Park. Aeration is a simple, yet effective, process of increasing oxygen levels in a lake and can not only greatly enhance the aesthetic beauty of the Lake, but can also improve the natural systems taking place beneath the water’s surface. Aeration enhances lake fish habitats, improving water quality, reducing algae, and removing phosphorus.  In addition, aeration can also break down unwanted bacteria, help with mosquito problems, and remove foul odors from the lake, all by circulating the water adding dissolved oxygen. The needs meet the guidelines for projects eligible for Local Capital Projects Improvement Program Funds. Proposed amount for the aeration system at Ron McCutheon Park and Butternut Park came in at $ 21,500.00. Further discussion ensued. Councilman Pessina made a motion. Councilman McKeon seconded the motion and passed unanimously. OLD BUSINESS: a. Saybrook Road Paving- Deputy Director Holden states to the Commission Cardinal should be delivering the final packet to us so we can submit to the State of CT. b. Recreation Center update- Paul Pizzo explains to the Commission that there has been a shift in approach due to the impact we got back from the finance department. He explains that there is only money allocated for phase one. He is looking at changing a little bit of the scope of work for phase one so we can take care of things that should have been done in phase two. The biggest issue is the roof. Right now we have a 1.3 Million dollar allocation for construction, we have decided through Director Russo and Deputy Director Holden that we are going to use the Building Department and as much state contract as possible so that we don’t have to go out to a general contractor. This will allow us to get a little more savings. Paul states that next month there will be more to report. c. Update on Harbor Park Boardwalk- Michael Doherty states to the commission that Gerber got off to a fast start. As of recent, some of the things that we have uncovered in the field have led to a design modification. A few field meetings have occurred to address these things. After this little hiccup, they will be out their full force. Gerber has been very responsive during all of this. d. April 2021 Building Permits- the Commission reviewed their Building Permits. As of May 12, 2021, we have generated $1,085,881.00 in permits. There were no questions. OTHER: a. April 2021 Monthly Reports- Highway Division- the Public Works & Facilities Commission reviewed their monthly reports for the Highway Division. There were no questions. b. April 2021 Overtime Reports-Parks Division – The Public Works & Facilities Commission reviewed their monthly reports for the Parks Division. There were no questions. PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS: As there was no further discussion, a motion was made to end the meeting by Councilman McKeon. The motion was seconded by Councilman Pessina and approved unanimously. The Public Works & Facilities Commission meeting adjourned.