Government
City of Melrose Public Works
Robert E. Beshara, P.E.
Superintendent & City Engineer
(781) 979-4170
Publicworks@cityofmelrose.org
MISSION STATEMENT DEPARTMENT
To maintain the City’s infrastructure, provide safe and efficient movement of vehicles and pedestrians; provide for dependable solid waste pickup and promote recycling, provide safe water distribution and sewer collection; and to expand and improve the city’s infrastructure systems to meet the future needs of the citizenry.
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Overview The Department of Public Works is one of the most diverse branches of city government consisting of 38 funded positions and a budget of $11 million. The department provides essential services to the 27,000 citizens of Melrose with the responsibility of maintaining over 95 miles of streets, approximately 120 miles of sidewalks, 80 miles of water, 78 miles of sewer, 1398 catch basins, collection of over 10,000 tons of household rubbish, curbside and drop-off collection of nearly 2,000 tons of recyclables, over 4,500 tons of yard waste by curbside pickup and drop off, and maintenance of 96 vehicles and numerous pieces of equipment. The Department is also responsible for response to snow, ice and other emergency services; responsible for the care of all City trees, for the maintenance of all parks and fields, for the maintenance and general operations of the cemetery, for enforcing of water, sewer and street ordinances; and engineering design and construction management for capital improvement and maintenance projects. To accomplish these functions, the Department is organized into 10 divisions: administration, engineering, sanitation, highway, trees, fleet, water, sewer, cemetery and parks.Administration and Engineering Divisions John V. Scenna, E.I.T., Deputy City Engineer Public Works Department Administration and Engineering Divisions are responsible for the overall management of Public Works; staff training; purchasing, procurement and contract administration; street lighting; utility company oversight; traffic signal oversight; Traffic Commission; operations and capital project budgeting; development and oversight of master plans; engineering design, specifications and plan preparation; provides engineering review of development proposals, subdivisions and other construction projects and provides support to Planning Board and Zoning Board; responsible for construction administration, management and inspection for city projects; right-of-way maintenance, GIS systems; and permitting; provides management and maintenance for City Hall. Goals for the Administration and Engineering for FY 2008 include the ongoing reorganization of the Administration Division; implementation of a advanced computerized Work Order System; implementation of the $500,000 GIS (Graphical Information Systems) Program; design for the City wide $6,000,000 drainage improvement program; oversee final construction of the Mass Highway Main Street TIPS Reconstruction Project; continued implementation and oversight of NPDES Phase II; final design of the MassHighway Lebanon Street project; Design for Phase IV Sewer I/I Program; Drainage CIP Development and Implementation; Middle School project oversight; Keyspan Infrastructure improvement Project; and fifth Annual Public Works Day.
Public Works
Operations - City Yard
Cemetery Department
Highway Division Highway Division is responsible for street sweeping, pothole repairs, curb, sidewalk and roadway repairs, catch basin cleaning, NPDES oversight; street lighting; traffic signals; traffic signs; roadway detours for construction work and other functions; street line and crosswalk line painting; Election Limit painting; Train Station maintenance and maintenance of all municipal parking lots; special City events such as Victorian Fair, Christmas celebration and Veterans Day celebrations; City wide American flags; and winter sanding and snow removal. Highway Division goals for FY 2008 include continuation of the city-wide street sweeping program, traffic line and crosswalk painting program, expanded sidewalk repair program and continuation of the Chapter 90 road program. Also included are the $2.7 million Ell Pond Drainage Upgrade project and the $1.4 million Converse Lane program. We will also be implementing the Mayor’s $6,000,000 drainage upgrade program to address the Ward 2 flooding issue as well as flooding issues in other areas.
Sanitation
Division Sanitation Division is responsible for the daily pickup of Solid Waste; oversight of the curbside recycling program; spring, summer and fall curbside Yard Waste pickup; downtown barrel and clean-up programs; City Yard drop off programs including TV’s, computers, tires, mercury items, textiles, yard waste, propane tanks, glass bottles and jars, No. 1-7 plastic bottles and jars, tin, steel, aluminum, food and beverage cans, cardboard, and paper; management of the City’s compost site; curbside white goods pickup; Christmas tree collection, disposal and wood chip program; and implementation of Hazardous Waste Day and other special drop off events.
Tree Division Tree planting programs; tree maintenance programs; tree trims and takedowns; stump grinding; tree removals; Tree Warden and Arborist services; Public/private tree planting program; and Arbor Day and Tree City USA events. Tree Division goals for FY 2008 include expanding the Public/Private effort to “re-tree” our City’s roadside; spring and fall tree planting programs; stump grinding program and a continued effort at the in house removal of diseased and hazardous trees city wide.
Parks Department
Vehicle
Maintenance and Fleet Division The Fleet Division is responsible for the maintenance, repair and replacement of all 68 Public Works vehicles and equipment, fire cars and pickups and all Cemetery and Park Division vehicles and equipment; maintain fleet inventory; provide periodic maintenance; perform minor repairs and major repairs and overhauls as required; maintains the entire winter fleet operation; small equipment repairs such as chain saws, lawn equipment, snow blowers, compressors; recommends scheduled replacements and vehicle/equipment replacement. This division is also responsible for over seeing and maintaining all operations buildings and grounds of the department. Fleet Division goals for FY 2008 include finalizing negotiations with the Police to take over their vehicle maintenance and repair; and, continuing to implement our computer vehicle analysis programs.
Water
and Sewer Division Operates and maintains two water pump station, four sewer pump stations, maintains 80 miles of water, 78 miles of sewer, 850 hydrants, and 1,340 water gates; maintain and read 8,500 water meters quarterly; prepare quarterly billing for about 700,000,000 gallons of water; prepare quarterly billing for sewer fee and trash fee; continuation of DEP lead testing and reporting and the Senior Citizen water and trash Discount Programs; engineering, design and construction oversight of year 6 and 7 of a 10-year $658,659 yearly program of MWRA LPAP water system improvement funds; manage over $1,000,000 in I/I (Inflow/Infiltration) grant and bond money for sewer rehabilitation work; continuation of our water improvement aimed at water system upgrades, replacement of substandard water services, fire hydrants and gate valves. Goals for FY 2008 for the Water Enterprise Division include $2.5 million in water main improvements for Dell Avenue, Mooreland Road, Norman Road, Enmore, Hillcrest and Lincoln Streets; City-wide Hydrant Flushing Program and system-wide leak detection program. Goals for FY 2008 Sewer Division includes continuation of the City’s aggressive City-wide Inflow/Infiltration upgrades, completion of the Upham Street Sewer Force Main project and sewer main upgrades on Grove Street from Main to Berwick Street.
Planning and Initiatives for the 21st Century The Mayor and the department envision a number of new initiatives to be undertaken as we move forward into the first decade of the 21st century. Principal among these is the commencement of an aggressive sewer inflow and infiltration (I/I) program. This program will begin to address the surcharging of our sewer system with flood waters. As groundwater and rain runoff our eliminated from the system, our sewer pump station performance and life span will increase and the need for upgrading the sewer pipes to larger diameters will be reduced. We will also continue with the water system upgrades, the replacement of old and poorly working hydrants, and the continuation of our aggressive hydrant flushing maintenance program. We are also looking to implement a capital improvement program to repair and rebuilt our streets and sidewalks. As the mission of Public Works grows to take on new responsibilities as the City reorganizes to meet the economic reality of reduced state aid and local revenues, we also are looking to renovate and upgrade the operations facilities on Tremont Street. |