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Everett officials request $1.5 million for next phase of lead service replacement; no committee vote
Summary
City staff asked the Ways and Means Committee to authorize $1.5 million to hire contractors for Phase 4 of Everett's multi‑phase lead service replacement program and described a 2025 schedule; the committee discussed funding details and vendor delays but recorded no formal vote.
City of Everett staff told the Committee on Ways and Means on March 20 that they are seeking authorization to spend $1,500,000 to proceed to Phase 4 of the city’s lead service line replacement program.
Erin Devaney, chief of staff, said the city will hire a contractor to replace lead service lines so homeowners are not forced to pay for the work. “Where this is lead service replacement and it impacts the quality of drinking water, the City of Everett has made the decision to be able to not put this burden on the homeowners,” Devaney said.
Devaney said the request would fund Phase 4 after the city completes Phase 3. Phase 3 identifies about 240 service connections; Phase 4 would cover roughly the same number. With the requested funding, staff said the city has 800 identified additional lead services to replace and about 1,200 service lines of unknown material that would be investigated. Based on earlier work, staff said there is an anticipated 20% rate of lead services among tested laterals.
The committee pressed staff on procurement and timing after staff said Phase 3 work planned for the 2024 construction season did not proceed because the apparent successful bidder had outstanding work under a separate city contract. “We wanted to make sure we were doing our due diligence and having contractual obligations satisfied,” Devaney said, describing the pause as a protective measure for public funds. She said Phase 3 would proceed in the 2025 construction cycle and Phase 4 could be bid for 2026, with the possibility of completing both phases in the same construction season if schedules align.
Councilors also sought clarity on who repays the loan and where repayments would come from. Devaney told the committee the funding package under discussion is a Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) offer that, for Phase 4, would be roughly 25% grant and 75% a zero‑interest loan; the city would be responsible for repaying the loan, likely from the water and sewer enterprise fund. “We would be responsible for paying back the 0 interest loan,” she said.
Committee members raised concerns that residents may still indirectly pay through water rates because the city will repay the loan from its enterprise fund, and that delays in 2023–24 had left the program behind schedule. Staff acknowledged the program fell behind when Phase 3 work did not proceed in 2024 and said additional contracting capacity could help the city catch up.
No formal motion or committee vote on the Phase 4 appropriation appears in the committee transcript for March 20; the item was discussed and staff answered questions about schedule, contractor selection, the inventory of service lines, and the MWRA funding terms.
