Infrastructure Update

Folks, these are tough times.  Inflation is high and residents are feeling the pinch of increased cost.  All of these factors also  affect the town. Our costs for roadwork and equipment have risen dramatically and we have had to scale back some of the proposed work. Roadwork and Repaving roads is 30-40% more expensive than it was last year, and this is a big part of our budget.

The town is continuing to work on infrastructure; Roads, Bridges, Culverts, Buildings, Grounds and Recreational facilities.
 

Roads:

This year we are shimming and chip sealing on the north side of the town. 
We just completed the shimming part on Hendee, part of Long Hill Rd, and Bear Swamp Road, with chip sealing beginning sometime in August.  We had planned to address more roads, but the cost increases have forced us to cut back.

We have been redoing the drainage on Shoddy Mill Rd this spring and early summer.  When this is complete, we will grind up the existing pavement on part of Shoddy Mill Rd (Rt 6 to Wales Rd) and Long Hill Rd from Rt 6 to Bear Swamp and then repave them.  This project is partially funded by a $128,500 STEAP grant.

The town has been lobbying the DOT through the capital regional council of governments (CRCOG) to provide more roadwork grants to rural communities.  This effort is starting to pay off.   Currently a lot of the grants are restricted to roads with higher traffic counts than Andover roads.  There is a new program that we are hoping to apply for. We hope to use a “TRIP” grant to help us pay for a major roadwork project next year.  Full grant details are not available yet.

Bridges:

As many of you know the crossing on Bunker Hill Rd of the Hop River is failing.  The town public works crew has done a temporary fix that we hope will last until we can replace it.   We applied for and got the bridge in the federal local bridge program and opted for the Design Managed by State program. The bridge is in the design stage and the start date is expected to begin in spring 2024.  The town would normally have to pay 20% of the cost of construction.

This spring, we also started the process of applying to replace the Long Hill Rd bridge over the Hop River also under the Federal Local Bridge program.  We received notice that we are accepted into the program.  We chose to apply now because it appeared that we might be able to get increased funding through the Federal investment and Jobs Act.

The State of Connecticut just announced that money from the Investment and Jobs Act will be used to pay for the towns contribution for replacing both of the bridges enrolled in the Federal Local Bridge program.  This will save Andover 1-1.2 million dollars in town tax dollars over the next 6 years.  The total dollar value of these bridge grants will be around 7 million dollars. 

We had  the initial project meeting for the Long Hill Bridge replacement with the DOT.

As part of the replacement, the town will try to accomplish a couple of other things.  First we hope to have a traffic light installed an Route 6 and Hendee Rd.  While the bridge is being constructed, a lot more traffic will need to travel down Hendee and a light will be essential. Hopefully, we can convince DOT that since we will not have a temp bridge over the river, they should add the traffic light onto the scope of the bridge services.  This will help with a longstanding problem at this location. 

Secondly, I would like to ensure that the bridge is built with a sidewalk so that the sidewalk on Long Hill Rd can be extended across the bridge to the athletic fields and Riverside Drive. 

Culverts:

We have been less successful making progress on replacing culverts.  We have a series of large culverts that are failing that the town needs to address in the coming years.  We have had survey and wetlands flagging done on the first two that need replacing.  We are hoping in the next few weeks to pick an engineering firm for the replacement design and to help us enroll in the State Local bridge program.  This program provides a funding 50% match which will help with the costs.

Buildings:

The Community Center Building committee has incorporated all the feedback from the public informational meeting and is close to releasing the Request for Proposal for building a new community center near the town hall.  The Board of Selectman intend to pay for construction with the money from the American Rescue Plan Act funding.  More information is available on the town’s website.

The second major project is to find a new storage area for the senior Transportation Fleet.  A number of locations have been considered on existing town properties.  Ultimately the Board of Selectman have recommended the demolition of 15 Center St (old fire house) and building a storage garage for the Senior transportation vehicles.  This is a central location in the town and has 3 phase power available.  This is important as it gives the town the ability to add fast dc electric vehicle chargers.  As the state of Connecticut pushes municipalities to electrify their fleets, it will be important to charge them rapidly.  The town will be applying for a STEAP grant to pay for 80% of the cost of the construction. The remaining funds will come from the existing Multiuse Building Fund.

The town has also applied for an Eversource Grant to add electric car chargers at the Andover Town Hall.  Initially the town hopes to install 2 chargers, but with the infrastructure in place for 2 more to be installed if needed.  Note:  As of 7/20  the town was notified that we have received the grant.

The town is also considering doing the same for the Andover Library.

Grounds and Recreational facilities

The last few years have seen improvements at the Andover Veterans Monument Park.  This was largely spearheaded by Vietnam Veteran Gerry Wright who fundraised relentlessly to make it happen.  The town also spent about 25,000 dollars in grant money on the project. 

The athletic fields continue to be maintained and used by FSC North, RHAM youth soccer as well as an adult team. This year we are installing a better grounding system to prevent any more lightning damage to the well and sprinkler system.

This year Public works created a rail trail parking area at Lake Road that can accommodate about 10 cars.  It will also tie into a pathway to the new retail operation at the corner of Lake Road and Route 6.

By the end of the summer a new Trail access-way at Center Street will be finished as will a new wider pathway to Long Hill Rd and a new crosswalk and signal.  This now ties into a handicap accessible walkway to the library along route 6 and a new ramp and handrail at the library.  This work is wholly funded by a $297,000 DOT Connectivity Grant.

Senior Transportation Vehicle.  The town has received $75,000 in grant funding for a new 15 passenger bus for senior transportation.  This will replace a 20-year-old bus.  Also as part of the IJA, the 20% town contribution is waived saving the town money

Summary of Grant Status: