Milton works through summer of water infrastructure projects

This summer is a busy one for projects in Milton, as the town is undertaking four separate water infrastructure projects over the next three months.

First up is the building of a new water treatment plant on town-owned land on Federal Street next to the rails to trails. The work involves building an electrical power feed extension, construction of a water treatment building, driveway improvements and well pump installation. The project also includes raw water piping to the treatment building, and installing water treatment equipment, chemical feed systems, finished water piping, and electrical power and controls.

The $1.6 million project is being funded through a federal grant via the American Rescue Plan Act. The Federal Street project has been identified as a priority by the town’s water committee, and officials have been working on it for several years. Use of ARPA funds is limited, with possible uses including water infrastructure, revenue recovery, broadband, housing or sewer projects. The land at 416 Federal St. was purchased in December 2019 with water infrastructure in mind. 

The other ongoing project is the replacement of water meters. The project started at the beginning of June and is expected to last through September. Town officials say the project will help make the water department much more efficient, allowing for bills to get out much sooner. Contractor Core and Main will also put in a data read collection system on existing town administration computers and perform annual software maintenance on the system.

The project is being funded with $1.5 million in funds raised by the bond issue as part of the special development district for the Granary at Draper Farm development. Of that money, $1 million is part of the first tranche of money as part of the Granary funds, with the town matching to the tune of $500,000. 

Adjacent to the treatment plant will be a new 500,000-gallon water tower. Town Manager Kristy Rogers said work on the tower will begin in August. The tower will be about 130 feet high and 56 feet in diameter, similar in height to the town’s two existing water towers. Town officials say it will provide additional storage to meet daily demand and serve as a backup if the town’s other towers are out of service for maintenance or repair. 

The $3.8 million project was approved by voters at a referendum in January 2024. 

Rogers said mobilization has begun on a $1.78 million water main replacement project that would replace 3,900 linear feet of existing mains underneath Carey, Walnut, Magnolia, Reed and Mill streets. The project will include replacing valves, abandoning the existing main and repaving the roadway. At Walnut and Mill streets, the town will upgrade to an 8-inch main, while at Carey Street, the upgrade will be from a 2-inch main to a 6-inch main. Like the water tower, borrowing for this project was approved by voters in January 2024. 

Finally, at its July 7 meeting, town council approved a $424,000 bid by Maryland-based contractor KMT Mechanical for rehabilitation of the Chandler Street water treatment facility. The project would include upgrading the plant’s electric system, generator, chemical feeds and testing equipment, and leveling the concrete floor. Like the water tower and water main projects, the Chandler Street project was approved in the 2024 referendum with a budget of $579,000. All three projects were funded through loans granted by the state Water Infrastructure Advisory Council. Terms of the loans are for 20 years at a 2% interest rate, with interest-only payments during construction.