Town Meetings

February 24. 2013 11:02PM

Bond to pay for tipping facility proposed in Derry

By ADAM SWIFT
Union Leader Correspondent

DERRY - The town has $4.75 million in capital projects it expects to pay for through a bond issue this spring.

The projects that will be covered under the bond issue include $3 million for a new tipping facility at the transfer station, $1 million for the reconstruction of Rockingham Road, $500,000 for the beginning of the water and sewer upgrade project on Route 28 south, and $250,000 for a water system upgrade at the Woodlands.

Town finance director Frank Childs and town administrator John Anderson brought the potential bond issue forward to the planning board last week as part of the capital improvement plan for the fiscal year 2014 budget.

The biggest project on the bond list, the tipping facility for the transfer station, should be self funding, according to Anderson.

"The increased recycling revenue is project to cover the full debt service for this project," said Anderson. "Therefore, there should be no impact directly on the taxpayers for the project."

Anderson said the design for the transfer station project is about 20 percent completed.

In addition to the projects for bonding, which have already been in the works, Anderson and Childs presented the new capital projects proposed by department heads for the fiscal 2014 budget.

The information technology department is requesting $90,000 for a fly-over of the town to update its geographic information system, according to Anderson.

The major project for the police department is $377,403 for the replacement of its marked cruiser fleet, which Anderson said the department does every three years.

"This project is proposed to be funded this time by a capital lease," he said.

The public works department is proposing the replacement of two large dump trucks for $81,500 each, with the town covering 20 percent of the cost and the remaining 80 percent covered by a state salt mitigation program.

Public works is also proposing $110,000 be spent for a loader replacement at the transfer station funded by a capital lease.

In addition, public works is looking to use $400,000 from a waste trust fund for a new recycling baler at the transfer station.

"That will go a long way toward processing the new separated waste at the transfer facility," said Anderson.

At the Derry Public Library, the major capital project is $83,000 for the conversion of the HVAC system from oil to natural gas.

Anderson reminded the planning board that none of the proposed capital items are set in stone yet.

"This is a draft and won't be finalized until the town council finalizes the budget in May," he said.

aswift@newstote.com