Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Infrastructure Bridges topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Blackstone committee weighs $6 million bridge estimate as it updates capital plan
Summary
The Capital Outlay Committee reviewed a consultant’s estimate of roughly $6,000,000 to repair two bridges and agreed to incorporate the figures into a revised capital plan pending administration review and prioritization; the administration will evaluate staged fixes and warrant-article options.
Jeff Silverstein, chair of the Town of Blackstone Capital Outlay Committee, said a consultant’s assessment identified a minimum of $6,000,000 in work on two bridges — on Bridge Street and St. Paul Street — and recommended including those estimates in the committee’s draft capital plan while recognizing the numbers may change after administrative review.
Why it matters: Bridge repairs would be among the largest near-term capital costs the town faces and could require warrant articles, staged work or specialized engineering decisions that affect traffic and town budgets.
Committee members debated urgency and funding paths. Unidentified Speaker (S5), speaking as a member of the Board of Selectmen, told the committee there is no immediate safety threat and that MassDOT would have barricaded an unsafe span; the administration and town engineers will compare repair options, including engineered culverts versus full replacement, and propose a prioritized schedule. "The answer is no" on immediate safety risk, Unidentified Speaker (S5) said during the discussion.
Silverstein said the committee should treat the consultant’s figures as placeholders to give the town visibility into large expenditures and update them as the administration produces firmer numbers: "When we do have hard numbers in front of us, we plug them in. And if we need to change those numbers, they can get changed." The committee agreed the Board of Selectmen and DPW superintendent will take expert advice on sequencing and whether to put articles on the warrant for engineering or for construction.
The committee also noted earlier town work that partially addressed some bridge issues (joints, scuppers, coatings) and discussed the impracticality of taking both bridges offline for simultaneous replacement. No formal funding decision or warrant article passed at this meeting; members directed staff and the administration to assess options and report back to the Board of Selectmen and the capital committee for inclusion in the next draft of the capital plan.
Next steps: The administration will return with recommended priorities and, if needed, draft warrant-article language or staged funding options for committee review before any formal vote.
