Burrillville council approves engineering contract and interim funding for Nasonville water system

The Burrillville Town Council on Sept. 24 authorized an engineering contract and an interim appropriation to advance design and permitting for a proposed Nasonville (also called Masonville in planning documents) water-supply and distribution system.

The action implements a plan tied to a $1,000,000 grant awarded through the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank’s emerging contaminants/infrastructure program. Council members voted, by voice, to authorize the town manager to execute agreement documents and to appropriate $100,000 from Major Capital Fund number 3820 to pay project-related expenses ahead of reimbursement under the grant.

Town Manager Michael Wooden told the council the water-and-sewer initiative began two to three years ago and that the sewer track has largely progressed separately. He said the $1 million grant was intended to cover engineering fees for design and permitting of the Masonville water supply, storage and distribution system and that a public procurement process produced three qualified proposals. The town entered negotiations with Parr Corporation, the top-ranked engineering firm, to provide the full range of design and permitting services.

Consultant Bob Ferrari of Northeast Water Solutions described the contract scope to the council: field survey and subsurface/geotechnical investigations, wetlands delineation, hydraulic modeling, structural and electrical design for storage tanks and distribution piping, and coordination with state agencies including the Rhode Island Department of Health, the Department of Environmental Management and Department of Transportation. Ferrari also said the team asked bidders to make “their best effort to meet nominal criteria for participation by MB, WB, DBE firms.”

Councilors and consultants discussed potential water sources and the system scale. Ferrari said the consultants have identified at least two to three viable supply options: an underused well field serving the Tarkon (Tarkon Brook) public system, a larger well field developed about 20 years ago (located outside Burrillville in North Smithfield) with an effective yield tested at roughly 1 million gallons per day, and potential interconnections to nearby systems. The consultants estimated a 20-year, 100% buildout peak demand near 400,000 gallons per day and an average-day figure on the order of 260,000 gallons per day. Early phases would likely need 50,000–70,000 gallons per day, growing to about 100,000 gallons per day in near-term build-out phases.

The draft scope includes four candidate tank locations, three river crossings, transmission mains along Douglas Pike, and storage tank sizing driven largely by fire-flow requirements. Ferrari said the contract includes an explicit line item for public outreach and workshops and, unusually, includes design of the house connection from the curb stop into the building for currently developed parcels where wells are located at rear property lines — a budget item intended to give property owners clearer cost estimates for actual connections.

Parr Corporation’s initial cost proposal for preliminary engineering came in about 10% below the town’s projection, with later design phases presented as a cost range tied to choices revealed by the hydraulics model and permitting process. The town will begin permitting work this fall and consultants estimated an aggressive design schedule of about one year on the short end, more likely 12–18 months once public outreach and agency coordination are included. The council heard a planning-stage total construction estimate in the range of $20–25 million, subject to change as design advances.

During discussion Council members thanked staff and consultants for securing the Infrastructure Bank grant and for the procurement effort. The motion to authorize the contract and interim appropriation passed by voice vote; the motion text and appropriation were recorded in the meeting materials as: authorize contract for engineering design services for the village water supply and distribution system per the proposal submitted (09/26/2024 as may be amended), authorize the town manager to execute required documents, and appropriate $100,000 from Major Capital Fund 3820 for project expenses prior to reimbursement from the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank grant.

Next steps reported to the council include finalizing the agreement with Parr Corporation, beginning subsurface and permitting work this fall, scheduling public workshops as part of the outreach line item, and continuing coordination with state agencies. Consultants and staff emphasized that source confirmation, permitting and hydraulic modeling will govern final route, tank siting and total project cost.