Dam Management Committee
May 19, 2008 Meeting Minutes
Members present:  Chairman Robert Thompson, Richard Brazeau, Leo Riendeau, Mark Rivers, Gate and Dem Keeper Howard Kinder, and Paul Lyons. Also Present: Guests Engineer Morris Root and Assistant Gate and Dam Keeper Young, Select Board member Ralph Armstrong, Town Administrator David Dann, William “Bill” Elliott and Administrative Secretary Leslie Bracebridge recording.
Meeting opened at 7:00 P.M.
Topics:
Review of tentative bid schedule on the agenda:
* Schedule will be used if the state funding is approved.
* The schedule will be included in the bid documents.
* Would advertising a project based on availability of state funding, affect the quality or quantity of good responsive bids?  Would it be worth waiting for a definitive notice of funding?  Would it make sense to ask the intended pool of bidders how the uncertainty would affect their interest in bidding?
* If the contract goes out to bid, there is no obligation to accept any of them.  
* Morris will help review the bids.
* It is doubtful that state funds could be carried over to the following year.  
Review of the Lake Wyola Dam Repair Technical Specifications:
* Section 2900 wants to put under 3600.
* To a question about the specifications needing a description of re-positioning the grate, Morris described possible methods and offered to add language to the specifications.
* Timing:  The 90 day construction period is an effort to keep vegetation from freezing.  The project and re-filling will be affected by the weather.  Morris rewrote the specifications on water management to avoid deep holes over a weekend. There will be 7 weeks to complete the repairs.   Differences between mother-nature affected timing and incompetence were noted.  “Scarecrow” language with fines will be added and costs for the Clerk of the Works justify a fine.
* It is hoped that Engineer Root would be the Clerk of the Works.  “The Town” in the specifications would mean the Clerk of the Works.
* A proposal was accepted that the project release 50% of the inflow into the Sawmill River.
* Payment time schedule?  Monthly payments upon invoices.  The American Institute of Architects offers a standard invoicing form.
* The specifications offer a choice of product manufacturers; substitutions can be made through a paperwork process that shows the substituted products to be of equal or better quality.
* A 5% deposit bid and a 50% payment bond is required of the bidders.
* The town will pay for the environmental monitor required by the Conservation Commission and will be paid separate from the contract.
* Morris will accept paper copies of suggestions for changes tonight.  He is also open to email corrections and suggestions.
* A staging area will be available at the State Park.
* Morris reviewed a description of the Clerk of the Works duties. (Addendum #2.)  Would it also be important to have a local person on duty at times when the Clerk of the Works cannot be present, to facilitate communications?  This would be a town expense.  Morris is the preferred Clerk of the Works.  It is recommended that his hours be moved up to 120 from 80 (includes travel time.)  There will be more and less critical times when it will be to the town’s benefit to have Morris on site.  Will the site be unobserved in the remainder of the time?  If it seems that extra observation time is needed, the Selectmen can address it and can call emergency meetings without meeting the 48-hour posting requirement.
* The most critical times will be when the crew is working on the dam itself.
* How are additional costs to be handled?  Morris will approve changes, but the town has to develop a payment method.  Selectmen can turn to the Finance Committee Reserves or a special town meeting.  A 20% buffer was built into the estimated cost.
* There won’t be cell phone service at the dam. There is a need for a phone at the site, especially to contact Morris. Leo will ask a neighbor to the dam for telephone use, the town could pay the bill.
*  Budget Review:  Still have $71,000 plus $150,000 for a total of $221,000 for the Clerk of the Works, an Environmental Monitor and the Contractor. An estimate of the cost of an Environmental Monitor developed from a prepared scope of services is needed. 

Review of Technical Specifications:
* The first 18 points will be scanned into the Order of Conditions in the document.
* A 2-page document from MESA will also be scanned into the Order of conditions.
* Section 2180 specifies a diversion pump that is quiet; see Baker.com for reference.  Pump capacity is an “educated guess.”  Open excavations will not be permitted when work is shut down for more than 24 hours.  Does the fire department have an emergency pump available?
* Landscaping suggests 10-20-10 when efforts are being made to keep phosphates out of the Lake?  Re-seeding will be downstream.  Specifications were taken from Stantec.  Morris will run the question by wetland scientists.  
* Under seeding, “use of Lake water for landscaping is acceptable” will be added wording.  Will the seeding take place in December or should it be adjusted to a more ideal time of year?  Wetland seed mix takes a long time to germinate.
* A larger diversion sleeve liner will be substituted instead of 36” because 40” is now available.

Final copies of the bid document will be made available to members and Dam Management Committee members are invited to help review the actual bids.

The next meeting will be in the first or second week of July if the funding comes through.  (David will either send out an airplane banner if the $150,000 is funded, or send an email announcement to members.)

Adjourned at 9:00 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Leslie Bracebridge
Administrative Secretary
080519 Dam Management Team 1