By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The Department of Public Works’ (DPW) road construction program will be getting underway this fall, Director John Scenna said during the Select Board’s Sept. 8 meeting.
Scenna said the DPW has hired the engineering firm Beta Group to provide engineering services. He said the DPW has been unable to fill the vacant town engineer position after former DPW Deputy Director/Town Engineer John Tomasz retired in late June.
“We have been recruiting for the position, but it has remained vacant for the time being,” said Scenna.
Scenna said Beta Group associate/client service manager Richard Stinson and Beta senior project manager Jason Plourde will both be working in town during road construction season.
“Beta Group are a multi-discipline engineering firm,” said Scenna.
Scenna recalled that voters rejected the DPW’s 10-year street improvement program debt exclusion, totaling $12,850,000, by 792 votes against to 580 in favor during a Special Town Election last January.
“That was unsuccessful, but we continued to work as hard as we could to create efficiencies in our road program,” said Scenna.
Scenna said the DPW will be hiring its own road construction contractor this fall. He noted that neighboring communities such as Wakefield and Melrose have standalone contractors. In the past, the DPW has shared a contractor with other communities.
“This year, Lynnfield decided to procure our own contractor,” said Scenna. “It will be a one-year contract with two one-year extensions, meaning this contractor is obligated to work for Lynnfield at Lynnfield specifications. It’s a catchall type of contract. It will be a contractor doing sidewalk work, berm work, structure work in the road, catch basins, drainage and then final pavement. We will not be moving contractors in and out, as what has happened in the past.”
Scenna said the road construction contract is currently out to bid.
“We think it is going to open Oct. 3 pending any issues,” said Scenna.
In addition to the $300,000 that the DPW received in the town’s fiscal year 2026 capital budget, Scenna said the DPW received $644,599.51 in Chapter 90 funds from the state for road construction.
“We ended up with about a $1 million program,” said Scenna. “We are selecting a two-year program. Our goal is to start work this fall once we have opened the bid. We want to start this fall and will work as long as winter allows us.”
After temperatures rise in the spring, Scenna said road construction will “start right away.”
“We will continue completing our fiscal year 2026 projects in the spring and will roll right into the summer with our fiscal year 2027 projects,” said Scenna. “Between now and this time next year, our goal is to complete two fiscal years of funding in one program.”
Scenna said the streets that will be repaved this fall will be Edward Avenue North, Edward Avenue South and Coleman Avenue.
“We will then go in and complete Sparhawk Drive, which started I believe started two years ago with some intersection rebuilding,” said Scenna. “The gas company then followed, so that has been three years in the making.”
Scenna said the DPW will be looking to repave Baldwin Lane and Russet Lane.
“We are going to do all of Baldwin and all of Russet,” said Scenna.
Scenna said the DPW will be looking to “rebuild” Barnsley Road with FY26 road construction funds. He said the DPW hopes to finish repaving Edgemere Road if the road construction bid “comes in on the conservative side.” He said National Grid paved half of Edgemere Road last year.
“We hope to have that completed as well,” said Scenna.
Scenna said the DPW will be looking to repave Apple Hill Lane and Cider Mill Road next summer.
“That will complete the entire neighborhood,” said Scenna. “We are looking to work on Maddison Lane, which is a dead-end off of Westover Drive that is in pretty tough shape. We had a few water main breaks there recently, which has deteriorated that even further. We want to start to get into the Richards Road and Carol Ann Road neighborhood, all of which is failing together. It’s time for us to start addressing that neighborhood and hopefully make our way over to Priscilla Road and other streets.”
Scenna said the DPW is also looking to repave Tophet Road and Cortland Lane next summer. He also said the DPW is looking to make “sidewalk improvements on Walnut Street.”
“That will address some neighborhood concerns in terms of vehicular safety,” said Scenna. “If we can’t do that with our road program, we will try and do it with our operating budget.”
Scenna said the DPW will be coordinating road construction with National Grid.
“They may be doing some of these projects early in the spring that we are going to finish in the summer,” said Scenna.
In addition to working on road construction, Scenna said Beta Group will be working on some drainage projects as well as providing technical assistance to the Planning and Conservation Department.
Scenna said the town has been awarded a $499,000 Complete Streets grant from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is being used to overhaul the Summer and Salem street intersection.
Additionally, Scenna said the DPW will be making crosswalk improvements by Town Hall as well.
Select Board Chair Phil Crawford was pleased that the town received more Chapter 90 funds from the state than officials previously anticipated.
“I am glad we got a little bit more money to do a little bit more work,” said Crawford.
Crawford asked Scenna what process does the DPW use to repair berms around town.
“If you do have a section of berm missing, just call us and email us,” said Scenna. “We keep a list. Every year, we try to go do a couple dozen locations. This contractor is also going to do that work.”
In response to a question from Crawford, Scenna said berm repairs will take place in the spring.
Select Board Vice Chair Alexis Leahy recalled that Beta Group developed a report to identify which streets need to be repaved as part of the rejected street improvement program last January.
“We are using that report again to prioritize where we need to? We are not going back out and doing that all over again?” Leahy asked.
Scenna said Leahy was correct.
“Nothing has changed since that report,” said Scenna. “Beta did do the report and every street I mentioned is in the top 3 percent of that report. We are absolutely still using it. We will not probably update that report until 2027.”
Scenna said the Beta Group’s report is on the DPW’s website.
After the discussion, the Select Board unanimously approved the 2025-2026 road construction program.