BGS: stormwater permits nearly complete for several correctional facility projects; bids expected this spring

Joe Asia, director of design and construction at the Department of Buildings and General Services, told the House Corrections & Institutions Committee that stormwater permitting has slowed project schedules but is near completion for several correctional facility sites.

BGS reported permits are in place for Middlesex and the Northwest State Correctional Facility in Saint Albans and said permitting for the third site referenced in the presentation is close to finished. Once permits are issued, those projects will be advertised for bid with construction anticipated in the spring. Joe Asia described typical stormwater treatments under consideration — rain gardens, holding tanks or ponds — and said much of the capture will be located inside fenced yards to avoid wetlands outside facility perimeters.

Committee members asked site-specific questions about flow paths, wetlands and surface material; BGS confirmed some drives are gravel now and that certain paving and narrowing actions will reduce impervious surface for partial credit under stormwater rules. BGS cautioned that bid prices have been variable and final scope and cost depend on bid returns.

What’s next: BGS will proceed with bidding after permits are finalized and return to the committee with construction schedules as bids and contracts are executed.