Greenfield’s Department of Public Works changed the order of its 10-year road plan to minimize the impact on the town’s budget this year.
The department cut its road-repair budget from about $125,000 down to $85,000, in order to soften the blow of other projects that the town needs to complete, namely to the library’s foundation.
Although there will be a little less activity with road repairs this year, DPW Road Manager Neal Beauregard told select board members during a regular meeting Tuesday night that the department plans to pave sections of Slip Road and Knotwood Drive this year.
After the meeting Town Administrator Aaron Patt told the Ledger-Transcript that Slip Road from Route 136 Intersection near The Riverhouse Cafe down past the train tracks would be paved. The crossing at the train tracks will also be repaired, he said. He said the stretch is about a half of a mile.
The department also plans to pave a section of Knotwood Drive this year.
Patt said the work will likely begin soon as the temperatures start to warm because that’s a better time to lay pavement.
He said the board also discussed updating its capital-improvement plan during the regular meeting. The board hopes to set up a plan so that it can spend money to make repairs on items such a DPW backhoe so that it can extend the life of the machine.
The board also received an update about electrical panels at its wastewater treatment site that were installed in 2003 and degraded over time. Patt said there are about 15 properties hooked up to the site, which is located below Delay’s Harvester Market, and is paid for entirely off of user fees.
Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234 or akessler@ledgertranscript.com.