By Stephen Tait
Staff Writer
July 18, 2008 03:53 am NEWBURYPORT — City and school officials are moving forward with major road and sidewalk projects following the City Council's approval of a $2 million capital plan that was pushed by Mayor John Moak. Moak said that on the city side, the resurfacing of State Street and Turkey Hill Road, along with several other repaving projects, will get underway first. He said the surfaces of State Street and Turkey Hill will be finished only to a certain point since next spring the roadways also will undergo storm water drainage work as part of the capital project. The other roads on the top of the priority list include Plummer Springs Avenue, Foster Court, Zabrinskie Drive, Curzon Mill Road and Boylston, Smith and Auburn streets. "We are trying to take care of it on a need basis, but as always, taking care of it on a funding basis," Moak said, who added there is not enough funding to take care of all the streets that need work. On the school side, Moak, who is also the chairman of the school board, said officials plan to first install a new $140,000 energy management system. Moak said the savings from the system — which includes a high-tech control system to monitor the heating and cooling in the Nock Middle School — mean it should pay for itself in about three years. The City Council voted unanimously this week to approve the plan. It was the second reading of the order, and the councilors did not discuss it. The $2 million capital plan aims to fix infrastructure needs, such as sidewalks and road repairs, among other items. The plan includes $1.5 million for an eight-item checklist for the city and $500,000 to pay for an 11-item checklist for the schools. The bond is for 10 years. The top needs include $100,000 to fix Inn Street electrical services, $220,000 for a sidewalk on Ferry Road, $150,000 for sidewalk repairs and $400,000 for storm water management projects. On the school side, the $500,000 would fund the renovation of several bathrooms, accessibility upgrades to three schools and security improvements. The security upgrades include locks on all classroom and office doors, cameras for entrances and parking lots, and renovations to lobbies to ensure visitors to the schools check in. "All these things have been needed for so long," Moak said. "To know that some of these acute problems can now be taken care of is a real positive." While the money is being borrowed by the city, Moak also included the $2 million on a ballot question that voters will consider in November. Under that plan, Moak is asking voters to approve a $7.8 million debt exclusion, which would cost the average taxpayer about $1,500 over a 10-year period. Moak's plan, if approved, would free up about $900,000 for this fiscal year's budget and about $850,000 for 2010. It would also increase the tax bill for a home assessed at $500,000 by about $140 and $175 for each of those years, respectively. The approval would enable the city to fund the school system with as much as $600,000, make improvements to the city's infrastructure, implement a vehicle and equipment replacement plan, and undertake several other initiatives.
Capital Projects Listed in order of priority: r Inn Street electrical service replacement: $100,000 r School building improvements: $500,000* r Ferry Road sidewalk: $220,000 r Sidewalk repairs: $150,000 r Storm-water management projects: $400,000 r Paving of State Street (south end) and Turkey Hill Road: $500,000 r Relocate a portion of Northern Reservation Terrace: $75,000 r Repair and upgrade City Hall first-floor bathrooms: $35,000
*School building improvements item includes 11 projects: r Nock Elementary accessibility upgrades: $60,000 r Bresnahan Elementary accessibility upgrades: $20,000 r Brown Elementary accessibility upgrades: $20,000 r Nock Middle School HVAC mechanicals: $35,000 r Nock exterior doors: $30,000 r Nock energy management system: $140,000 r Nock building issues: $40,000 r Brown bathroom renovation: $15,000 r Nock bathroom renovation: $25,000 r Bresnahan bathroom renovation: $25,000 r Security upgrades: $150,000
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