Town administrator, DPW director say library, senior-center maintenance needs study; ticketing rollout to improve response

Town Administrator Phil Gould and Director of Public Works Leslie Quish said the town will not place a full‑time maintenance worker in the library but will pursue a needs assessment and better work‑order procedures to improve maintenance response.

Gould told the Budget Board that library director Becky (first name only in the record) should request DPW assistance when repairs or emergencies arise and that the town is rolling out ClickFix, an online ticketing/workflow system, to track requests and response times. ‘‘If there’s a leak or lights out, call over here,’’ Gould said, adding that the ticketing system will capture follow‑up and time‑to‑response metrics.

The explanation came after public and board discussion about perceived slow responses and requests for extra staffing at the library and senior center. Gould said a formal needs assessment for the library should have been part of the director’s original budget ask; he has included a placeholder in the municipal budget for an outside needs assessment and indicated it will be scoped as an RFP. He estimated the placeholder might be $25,000 based on prior work but said actual bids could come in closer to $12,000–$15,000 once an RFP is issued.

Board members and staff discussed alternatives to a full‑time hire: reallocating hours, moving part‑time janitorial time between facilities, or adding seasonal help during peak use. Gould and Quish said DPW can prioritize emergencies and routinely scheduled work once ClickFix is active. They also noted that some overtime currently charged to the library for a DPW employee’s hours appears in aggregated line items and needs clearer time reporting so costs can be allocated correctly.

Quotes and public comments recorded at the meeting emphasized housekeeping items (trash, paper towels, plugged toilets) and argued those alone did not justify a permanent in‑house maintenance position. Gould urged better daily communication: email the DPW inbox or create a ClickFix ticket for nonemergencies and call for prioritized emergencies. The board asked staff to separate line items in budget presentations so overtime and cross‑department charges are transparent.

Ending: The board asked staff to return with a draft RFP scope and clearer overtime/time‑allocation accounting. The town will continue ClickFix rollout and use the needs assessment to decide whether to shift hours or request a staffing change in a future budget cycle.