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Avon council reviews CIP presentations; police add second ambulance during peak hours
Summary
Councilors heard capital-improvement presentations from engineering, police and the volunteer fire department, covering Old Farms Road reconstruction, bridge replacement, sewer interceptor concerns and fire-apparatus requests. The police chief said the town added a second dedicated AMR ambulance during peak overload hours to improve coverage.
Councilors reviewed a series of FY24/25 capital-improvement presentations covering road, sewer, police and fire needs.
Town Engineer Larry Baril outlined requests including additional design funding for the Old Farms Road East/West reconstruction (with LOTCIP construction funding noted), a replacement bridge over Thompson Brook that is approved for 50% state Local Bridge Program reimbursement for design and construction, drainage-repair requests tied to more intense storm events, and a Farmington Interceptor replacement design request to address surcharging that can cause sewer backups into manholes and basements. Baril said the interceptor replacement design will be coordinated with Farmington and possibly Canton and that some projects may be eligible for grant reimbursement.
Chief Paul Melanson summarized police capital needs—replacement of dispatch consoles and in-car modem technology—and staffing updates. Melanson also presented an EMS overview and said the town’s AMR contract provides one dedicated paramedic ambulance; after recent monitoring the town negotiated to add a second dedicated ambulance during peak overload hours (Mon–Fri 9 a.m.–9 p.m.; Sat–Sun 8 a.m.–6 p.m.) to be staged in the western part of town and to cover overload calls in Avon and Farmington.
Fire Chief Bruce Appell and Assistant Chief Joe Speich described apparatus requests including a two-year tanker replacement plan and replacement chassis for Truck 15, noted long lead times for specialty apparatus and rising costs, and requested $200,000 for ongoing facilities planning plus a $35,000 generator for Station 2. The Department said older apparatus are reaching recommended replacement dates and mutual-aid tanker resources are used when needed.
Councilors asked questions about trail connectivity, integrating the Connectivity Plan with recreation planning, the potential need for a townwide referendum on some road projects, and sewer lateral expansion priorities. No construction funding votes were taken at this meeting; the presentations will inform upcoming budget discussions.
