Select Board allocates ARPA funds as deadline approaches

Abby Van Selous

Oct 30, 2024

File photo

Drinking water treatment and wastewater treatment will get $247,100 in federal American Rescue Plan Act money to pay for repairs and match the Public Works Department’s contribution to the Buzzard Bay Coalition’s "septic-to-sewer incentive" program.

The Select Board made the allocations at its Monday, Oct. 21 meeting in a race to meet an end-of-year deadline to spend the remainder of the just under $5 million Dartmouth was awarded under the pandemic-recovery ARPA program. Following Monday’s allocations, Dartmouth is now left with $201,900, which they must allocate by Dec. 31 of this year and spend by Dec. 31, 2026. If they do not do so, they will lose the funds.

The Department of Public Works was allocated two separate funds for two projects totaling $103,600.

Of the allocated money, $76,600 will go toward upgrades to the 579 Old Westport Road Water Treatment Facility as supplemental funding due to a higher project cost following the bidding.

Upgrades to the treatment facility will improve water quality and ensure that it’s safe to drink before going out into the distribution system, said Public Works Director Tim Barber.

The upgrades will also ensure protection if there are any “bacterial hits” in the wells. The protection would allow wells to continue to pump once they are sampled for bacteria and the samples come back negative, Barber said.

“It’s upgrading the infrastructure to meet today’s needs,” he said.

The remaining $27,000 allocated to Public Works will go toward the department’s rate efficiency study contract. An amendment for additional work on the study was recently submitted.

The Select Board also allocated $100,000 to match the Buzzard Bay Coalition’s Connect to Protect Program, which enables residents to connect to sewer with financial and technical assistance.

The ARPA funding will make it possible to connect an additional 80 homes.

“We’ve no shortage of houses that need to tie in,” Select Board member Heidi Silva Brooks said.

The Board of Health director Christopher Michaud initially requested $10,000 to conduct studies on the Slocum’s and Westport rivers to find out how they are performing.

The last time a study was conducted on Slocum’s River for total nitrogen was “over 18 years ago,” Michaud said.

In addition to collecting new data from Slocum’s River, the funds will make it possible to start studying the Paskamansett River.

The Paskamansett River, Michaud said, is “starting to function largely as a drain pipe for Route 6 and the retail corridor, which is extremely concerning.”

The Select Board, at the suggestion of Chair Shawn McDonald, chose to allocate $25,000 to the Board of Health so that a more comprehensive study could be completed.

These additional funds will allow for a study into Shingles Island and more specific testing on the Paskamansett River, in addition to Slocum’s River and the Westport River studies.

“The more information we get the better,” McDonald said.

Facilities were allocated $18,500 to replace the body of a town hall truck, which Director of Parks and Recreation Tim Lancaster said was “incredibly rotted.”

With the $18,500, facilities will be able to upgrade the truck with a compartment body and lift gate rather than simply replace its pick-up bed.

“The frame of the truck is in perfect shape, the engine’s in great shape, it’s I think mid-40s for mileage, which is really good,” Lancaster said. “We can easily get another 10 years out of that truck.”

“None of these things that we are talking about tonight are nice to haves,” Brooks said. “They’re all needed.”