WESTFIELD – Three contractors involved in school and energy efficiency projects presented information to members of the City Council’s Legislative & Ordinance and Finance committees Thursday night during a discussion of a $17 million bond request submitted by Mayor Daniel M. Knapik.
The presentation pertained to the $12 million Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) green energy grant as well as energy efficiency programs at several other municipal buildings.
The presentation, which lasted about 90 minutes, raised as many questions as it answered. Several councilors expressed concern about the $17 million funding request and asked for more specific data before the council votes on the bond request.
Dan Pallotta, the project manager for the city’s owners project manager, P3; Roland Butzke of Siemens, which the city hired to increase energy efficiency and reduce the municipal energy footprint; and Rebecca Sherer of Tight & Bond, the city’s engineering consultant for the MSBA Green Energy grant program, linked the $12 million Green Energy project with the work to be completed through the proposed $17 million bond.
The MSBA grant, which reimburses the city at a 62 percent rate, includes the installation of 13 boilers in five school buildings, as well as replacement of windows and two sections of the Westfield Vocational-Technical High School.
The problem is that Siemens has recommended switching most of the boilers from steam systems to hot water systems because the energy required to heat water to 140 degrees is much lower than the energy required to convert water to steam.
That conversion will required additional work, such as replacing pipe lines and installing ventilation systems with individual climate control systems for each classroom, work that is not covered by the MSBA grant program.
Funding included in the proposed $17 million would also be used for energy efficiency projects at other municipal buildings, including the Police Department, the Fire Department including the Western Avenue and Southampton Road substations and the Department of Public Works garage on South Broad Street.
The city has 40 buildings in which the heating systems have failed or are in jeopardy of failure.
Nearly $1 million of the proposed bond would be used to repair damage to a brick wall in the courtyard of the Tech-Voc school building. A section of structural steel over a window has rusted and is twisting, creating a large gap to permit more water penetration into the interior of the wall.
The two committees began their discussion after the consultants left with a list of additional information requested by the councilors. Other questions related to the city’s debt and payment schedule was address to City Treasurer Greg Kallfa.
Several councilors expressed dire concern with the city’s ability to keep adding debt for building maintenance projects and new construction.
In addition to the $12 million bond approved to finance the upfront MSBA Green Energy program, the Council has approved a $36 million bond to finance the construction of the new elementary school proposed at the intersection of Cross and Ashley streets. The city’s share of the Green Energy program is about $4.5 million, while the city’s cost of the school building project is about $13 million.
The city also funded about $1.8 million to replace the roofs of the Southampton Road and Highland elementary schools through the MSBA at a direct cost of about $700,000 to the city and has applied to the MSBA to replace the roofs of Paper Mill and Munger Hill elementary schools because algae, and weather, has damaged those 22-year roofs.
The L&O members voted to bring the $17 million bond out of their committee at the City Council meeting slated for March 15. While that vote was unanimous, the four members voting on the motion all expressed reservations.
The Finance Committee, with two members present, was even more divided. At-large Councilor David A. Flaherty made a motion to table the issue. Ward 5 Councilor Richard E. Onofrey Jr., finance chairman, declined to second Flaherty’s motion because of the tight timeline presented by the consultants. Flaherty eventually made a motion to refer the issue to the L&O, the parliamentary process, but then voted against his own motion.
State law requires that boilers have to be activated by Oct. 15 each year, even if they are not used to produce heat. That fact means contractors have to be in place, not just for the boiler, roof and window replacement efforts, but for the ancillary work for piping, ventilation and system control before the end of school.
City Purchaser Tammy Tefft said that she needs the funding in place by early April to execute those contracts. The boiler contract has been awarded and came in $700,000 below the estimates, meaning that amount can be used, if other elements of the project exceed estimates.
The fact that much of the work has not been advertised for bid means that the true costs of that work is unknown, which concerned several of the councilors.
“We’ve asked for a lot of additional information,” Ward 4 Councilor Mary O’Connell said. “I’ll vote to bring it out for the first reading next week, but if we don’t get that information, I’ll vote no.”
At-large Councilor John J. Beltrandi agreed with O’Connell.
“That a fair assessment, but if we start (the construction) we have to finish,” he said. “We have the option now to opt out, but to not start it is irresponsible.”
Onofrey said the problem is that the city has not maintained its buildings “for the past 25 years, that’s why we’re in this position now. This is our opportunity to do these repairs.”
Flaherty question if the city and school department will adopt a maintenance program.
“I’ve been asking for maintenance funding for the past two years, and it always gets cut,” he said.
Ward 2 Councilor James E. Brown Jr., chairman of the L&O, said that he will make a motion to seek a Law Department opinion on the council’s ability to establish a new Municipal Building Maintenance Department that would be responsible for maintaining all city-owned buildings, including schools.
“That way the mayor controls building maintenance funding,” Brown said. “The first thing the School Department cuts is maintenance to preserve educational programs.”
