By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The Department of Public Works (DPW) will be restructuring its 46 staff members as part of the proposed fiscal year 2026 operating budget, Director John Scenna said during the Select Board’s March 10 meeting.
Scenna is requesting a $9,534,767 operating budget for FY26, an 11.1 percent increase over the current fiscal year’s $8,582,239.10 allocation.
Select Board Chair Dick Dalton asked why the proposed DPW operating budget increased by 11.1 percent.
Scenna said he increased the snow and ice removal budget from $120,000, which has been the annual appropriation for a number of years, to $450,000 for FY26.
“It includes a $320,000 increase for snow removal,” said Scenna. “This has a $450,000 snow budget. Traditionally, we have been at $120,000.”
Scenna said he, Town Administrator Rob Dolan and Finance Director/Town Accountant David Castellarin decided for the time being to increase the snow and ice budget, but the final allotment could change. Dolan will be presenting the consolidated FY26 operating budget to the Select Board on Thursday, March 20, beginning at 6 p.m. in the Al Merritt Media and Cultural Center.
“For the last three years, we have spent $500,000,” said Scenna. “We are projected to spend about $650,000 this year. It is proposed right now, and I know that the town administrator is losing sleep over what to bring that number in at.”
Dalton said the current proposal was “the responsible thing to do.”
“That is not technically an extraordinary item, but it is really kind of a catch-up,” said Dalton.
Scenna said the DPW has “made a lot of changes over the last six to eight months.”
“One of the main objectives of this budget for FY26 in general is a reorganization of staff within the department of itself, with the goal of creating streamlined, structured and organized working groups to make sure all of these areas of the department can be maintained,” said Scenna. “We don’t want to steal from one group to address another. That was the goal. We challenged ourselves to reorganize from within so we can address as many of these varying tasks as we can.”
Dalton expressed his support for reorganizing the DPW.
“There has been a lot of thought that has gone into it,” said Dalton. “I think it is a plan that really positions the department to deal with the world today.”
Select Board member Alexis Leahy said she appreciated Scenna’s “introspective look at the department and how it was operating.”
“I thought that was really well done, really nicely laid out and thoughtful,” said Leahy. “It really benefits town services with the way we approached it.”
Scenna said there are currently 46 full-time employees who work for the DPW.
“That will not change, but there is going to be some regrouping of staff to better provide service,” said Scenna.
Scenna said line items for utilities have been reduced due to the ESCO (energy service company) program.
“ESCO is the energy service-driven contract that we completed last year,” said Scenna. “We are seeing reductions in consumptions where they were projected. That money has been reduced from the Public Works Department and has been put towards the debt payment for that project. That is the commitment we made to the community. By doing this project, we upgraded our infrastructure quickly and we are starting to see a return on that investment.”
Capital needs
While the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Committee has yet to finalize the town’s capital budget for FY26, Scenna gave an overview of some of the DPW’s needs.
Scenna said the DPW is looking to implement an annual roof repair program.
“Our roofs in general are in pretty good shape,” said Scenna. “Our new facilities superintendent brought in a consultant in to look at some items. A day-and-a-half in Lynnfield found some issues. A little bit of maintenance year-to-year prolongs the life of a roof. We have proposed an annual roof program to be part of our capital program moving forward.”
Scenna also the DPW is looking to implement a new asset management system to process work orders, which is currently undertaken manually.
“There is a lot of technology that could help the department work more efficiently, but more importantly help us communicate,” said Scenna. “If a principal at a particular school wants to know the status of a repair, online software could provide that answer in minutes. But right now, they have to make a call and leave a message. It becomes quite cumbersome. This proposal would streamline all of that. We have applied for a Community Compact Grant for this project as well.”
Scenna is also looking to purchase a new salt shed for the DPW.
“The facility does need an upgraded salt facility,” said Scenna.
Scenna said the DPW’s fleet needs include a new frontend loader with forks, a box truck with a chipper, a large dump truck sander with a plow, grass mowers for cemeteries and parks, midsize trucks with plows and maintenance vehicles.
Additionally, Scenna said the DPW is looking to address drainage issues on Dale Road, Durham Drive, Grey Lane, Glen Meadow Park, Munroe Street, and Walnut Street at Bluejay Road.
“We have proposed a $50,000 investment for a succession of years to start to do a deep dive and see if we can make those go away,” said Scenna.
Scenna said the DPW recently opened the bid for the Pioneer Stadium turf field replacement at Lynnfield High School, which totaled $700,000. Last November, Fall Town Meeting approved transferring $915,000 from the Recreational Capital Trust to the DPW’s FY24 capital budget to replace the turf at Field 1 at Pioneer Stadium.
“It will probably leave about $100,000 that the Recreation Commission can invest in and around the field, whether it is fence work or other work,” said Scenna.
Select Board Vice Chair Phil Crawford said he was “very happy” with the turf field bid. He noted that the new turf field will include BrockFill instead of rubber pellets.
“I think that will be a nice new surface to play on,” said Crawford.
Scenna said the CIP has “placeholders for future turf replacement.”
While townspeople rejected the DPW’s street improvement program during a Special Town Election in early January, Scenna said the DPW will be requesting $300,000 for road construction that would supplement the Chapter 90 funds that the town receives from the state. He is anticipating an increase in Chapter 90 funds in FY26, but he said the State Legislature has yet to vote on the bill.
Crawford said Scenna has been “doing a great job” since he began leading the DPW since last summer.
In response to a question from Leahy about the repairs needed at the Lynnfield Public Library, Crawford said the top priority is addressing water leaking into the basement.
“That is first thing we have to address before we address anything else,” said Crawford.
Dalton noted that the DPW provides a wide variety of services for the community, including school custodians and bus drivers.