Politics & Government

[Update] $850,000 More Approved for Debris Removal

Michael's Tree and Loader Service is also servicing select private and association-owned roads.

Update, Nov. 23, 10:17 a.m.

If debris has been cleared from your street at this point, it is safe to assume Michael's is not coming back, Town Manager Brandon Robertson said after the special meeting.

Michael's contractors are also removing 5,500 cubic yards of storm-related hanging branches along the roads it is servicing, Public Works Director Bruce Williams estimated.

Find out what's happening in Avonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

For information about when debris will be picked up from your street, contact the Public Works Department at 860-673-6151.

Update, Nov. 23, 8:23 a.m.

Find out what's happening in Avonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Town Council unanimously voted to recommend appropriating up to an additional $850,000 for debris removal at its joint special meeting with the Board of Finance.

The finance board approved that amount by a majority.

The initial amount the town officials talked about requesting was $775,000 and Town Manager Brandon Robertson said that the town will work to stay under that number.

Bumping the request up to $850,000, gives the town a cushion.

Update, Nov. 23, 8:17 a.m.

The Michael's Tree and Loader Service crews will be taking Wednesday and Thanksgiving off and resume work on Friday, Public Works Director Bruce Williams said.

He estimated Wednesday that they will be done by the end of next week.

Update, Nov. 23, 8:14 a.m.

While Michael's Tree and Loader Service will continue to clear debris in the coming weeks, the town is asking residents not to put more brush on the curbside for pickup at this point.

All debris should have been out by Nov. 21.

If debris is put out beyond Nov. 21 that can throw off the town's estimates of how much debris there is, Town Manager Brandon Robertson said.

Any non-storm related debris that residents leave on their curbside could jeopardize the amount of Federal Emergency Management Agency reimbursement the town receives, town officials said.

Update, Nov. 23, 8:05 a.m.

Michael's Tree and Loader Service will be making second runs on streets it already serviced before Nov. 21, assuming that there was still debris left. Once second round debris clearing is done, those streets will be considered "closed," meaning Michael's will not revisit those areas.

If the crews never made it to streets before Nov. 21 and residents put out debris by the deadline, any pick-ups made after that point will be the last.

The Memphis contractor has already been through some streets twice, and if that is the case, they will not be back.

Secret Lake and Lakeview association roads have already had all eligible debris removed, Town Council Chairman Mark Zacchio (R) said.

Original Story

Now that the town is asking Michael's Tree and Loader Service to remove debris on , as well as Secret Lake and Lakeview association roads, brush quantities will likely exceed the 100,000-cubic-yard limit specified in the town's contract with the Memphis, TN company.

The town is seeking an additional $775,000 appropriation to the approved $1,476,190 to pay for the removal of up to 30,000 cubic yards more of debris, Steve Bartha, assistant to the Avon town manager, said. That incorporates between 7,500 and 12,500 cubic yards of debris on private roads and 17,500 to 22,500 cubic yards more of brush on public roads.

"When we looked at the private roads, the Secret Lake, Lakeview, the non-association roads and used sort of a range of debris, we figured that might result in an additional 7,500 to 12,500 cubic yards," Bartha said. "The other part of it was nobody around here had experience trying to quantify what they debris they were looking at was."

In fact, AshBritt, the contractor the state hired to remove debris from state-maintained roads like Route 10, 44, 167, 177 and 202, initially told the town they had 30,000 cubic yards of debris, well under the now estimated 130,000 cubic yards.

Bartha said that, historically, the town has offered Secret Lake and Lakeview associations services like hiring a contractor for snowplowing. Typically, the town just offers emergency and education services to residents in private associations, as many associations have a budget for services like debris removal, often included in association fees charged tenants. Many other private residential associations in town have already taken care of debris removal. Michael's has offered associations not included in this deal the same pricing as the town for private contract work.

"If you belong to an association, you have the resources of the association behind you," Bartha said. "If you live in Farmington Woods you pay an annual fee to belong to that association. The fees they collect from residents go into a fund for landscaping, plowing and things like that. But if you live on Camelot Lane, that's a private road off of Old Wheeler Lane, it's five houses, historically they've chipped in to get their plowing done. They don't have an association behind them. So we said in light of that because we're doing it on the public roads, we'll do it on the private roads."

Otherwise, residents living on roads owned by private associations other than Secret Lake and Lakeview can drop their brush off at the Avon Landfill through Saturday without a permit and at a reduced price.

The includes a 5 percent contingency and $113,290 to pay public works employees overtime and hire volunteer firefighters as temporary employees for compliance monitoring. 

The Town Council and Board of Finance will hold a special meeting at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning in the Selectmen's Conference Room in Town Hall, Building One. They will discuss and review the request for more money for debris removal. If the Town Council recommends it to the Board of Finance, the finance board members will vote on approving it.


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