Tammy Tefft, director of purchasing for city of Westfield (WNG File Photo)
WESTFIELD – Westfield Director of Purchasing Tammy Tefft presented the request for an appropriation of $48,000 from Free Cash to the Purchasing Repair Maintenance Account, to the Finance sub-committee, chaired by Brent B. Bean, II, on Wednesday.
Tefft said the funds would be used for an OSHA study of city-owned buildings to be conducted by Facilities Director Bryan Forrette. She said that DPW Assistant Director Francis Cain first reached out to them to do an audit of all the DPW buildings.
“We need to be in compliance. We want to do a study to find out where we have deficiencies,” Cain said at the meeting. He said they already are aware the highway garage has some issues.
Tefft said they decided it would be better to have one study done on all of the buildings. She said as of Feb. 1, the city is OSHA regulated, although inspections have not yet begun, and the study will allow them to understand where the deficiencies are. “The penalties are pretty significant,” she said, adding that Forrette has started the review of the buildings.
Tefft said no one on staff currently is OSHA certified. Previously, Mayor Daniel Knapik was OSHA certified, and did the staff trainings, Tefft said. Cain said the DPW has employees with OSHA 10 construction certification.
Bean asked whether it would be worthwhile to train somebody in OSHA certification, but Tefft said it was not worth it. “This is just an audit,” she said.
Other items recommended by the Finance committee included a transfer of $1,500 within the Police Department Animal Control Training account to purchase of services, and a transfer of $46,535 from the Airport, Capital Project Account to the Redesign Account.
Also approved on a 2-0 vote was an appropriation of $200 from the Reserve for Unforeseen Account to the Engineering Department, for work related to the Western Avenue project; a transfer of $16,666 from the Police Department Settlement Account to Insurance Reimbursement Account, and a transfer of $778 from the DPW to pay for a prior year FY18 employee payroll contractual step increase. “It was missed,” said DPW Director David Billips.
Aditionally, a grant of $7,811 from the Mass. Office of Grants and Research Highway and Traffic Safety Division to the Westfield Police Department for the FY2019 Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Grant program for work on crosswalks was also recommended by the committee.
