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Select Board approves traffic-easement change, police vehicle purchases, culvert design and sewer fee deferral
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Summary
The Bedford Select Board unanimously approved a small easement expansion for a traffic signal project, awarded two police vehicle purchases, authorized a $92,000 culvert-design contract for Shawsheen Road, and deferred sewer connection fees for a Loomis Street redevelopment, all by 5-0 votes.
The Town of Bedford Select Board on Jan. 26 unanimously approved several Department of Public Works actions needed to advance infrastructure and public-safety work.
DPW Director David Manugian told the board the town received a $500,000 MassDOT Local Bottleneck Reduction Grant to replace aging traffic-signal equipment and synchronize signal timing along Great Road. During construction crews discovered previously undocumented underground utilities near the Loomis Street/Great Road intersection, forcing a minor design adjustment and a roughly 55-square-foot expansion of the existing traffic-signal easement at 5 Lane Avenue. The board voted to amend the permanent signal easement and authorized the Town Manager to implement the change.
Manugian also presented FY2026 vehicle replacements under the Metropolitan Area Planning Council/Greater Boston Police Council contract. The board approved purchase of an unmarked Ford PIU Interceptor AWD Hybrid (net bid $46,187.40) and a marked Ford PIU Interceptor Police Responder (net bid $45,413.80), both from Colonial Municipal Group. Manugian said the vehicles would be assigned to school resource officers; he told the board that fully electric vehicles currently do not meet the department’s operational requirements and that trading existing vehicles was more cost-effective than buying two completely new replacements.
The Select Board approved a design contract with Woodard & Curran for removal and replacement of undersized culverts at 131 Shawsheen Road. Manugian said the undersized pipe system has backed up during heavy rainfall and is eroding the embankment on a wellfield site. The design contract, using the town’s planning standard referenced as the '2070 standard,' carries a fee of $92,000 and is expected to be completed in winter/spring with permitting and bidding for construction to follow in future fiscal years.
The board also approved a request from Beacon Point Development to defer sewer connection and infiltration/inflow (I/I) fees for redevelopment at 18 Loomis Street until prior to the issuance of certificates of occupancy; all fees must be paid before occupancy is granted.
All DPW-related votes carried 5-0.
Votes at a glance • 5 Lane Avenue signal easement amendment — motion moved by Shawn Hanegan, seconded by Terrence Parker; outcome: approved, 5-0-0 (authorized Town Manager to implement). • Police vehicle purchase (unmarked Ford PIU Interceptor AWD Hybrid) — moved by Bopha Malone, seconded by Shawn Hanegan; outcome: approved, 5-0-0 (Colonial Municipal Group; $46,187.40). • Police vehicle purchase (marked Ford PIU Interceptor Police Responder) — moved by Bopha Malone, seconded by Shawn Hanegan; outcome: approved, 5-0-0 (Colonial Municipal Group; $45,413.80). • Shawsheen Road culvert design contract (Woodard & Curran) — moved by Terrence Parker, seconded by Bopha Malone; outcome: approved, 5-0-0 ($92,000). • Deferral of sewer fees for 18 Loomis Street — moved by Daniel Brosgol, seconded by Shawn Hanegan; outcome: approved, 5-0-0 (fees to be paid prior to certificates of occupancy).
What’s next: design work for the culvert will proceed toward permitting and future construction bidding; the traffic-signal easement amendment allows construction to continue on the MassDOT-funded signal upgrades. The Loomis Street fee deferral requires payment of all connections and I/I fees before occupancy certificates are issued.