by Joan Eliyesil ·
Friday, September 13, 2024
For the next 18 months, Depot Road will be an active construction site as the $7 million project to connect town water to the Devens water supply begins. Starting the week of Sept. 16, contractors will begin installing a water main along the full length of Depot Road, from Ayer Road to the railroad tracks. The water main will continue under the tracks to a new pump station, and another water main will be installed from the station to a Devens water supply connection point near Salerno Circle.
Department of Public Works Director Tim Kilhart told the Press that residents should expect travel delays on Depot Road, mainly during weekday work hours. He said the Transfer Station and Ryan Land playing fields will remain open, but on some days it may take a bit longer to get to those locations. Depot Road residents may also need to adapt their schedules when construction is taking place at the end of their driveways.
Kilhart said he didn’t know on which end of Depot Road construction will begin, but residents can avoid work areas by using Mill Road, Under Pin Hill Road, Prospect Hill Road, or Old Shirley Road to access Depot Road destinations.
No road closures are expected, but Kilhart said the area near Under Pin Hill Road will likely require heavy equipment because of the amount of ledge in that area, and the road curves in that area may make travel dangerous. He said the Police Department will decide if the road needs to be closed for safety reasons on some days. He added that, in the event of a road closure, detours would be set up, and as much advance notice as possible would be given on the town website and on the Police Department’s Facebook page.
When the project is finished, town water customers, including the schools and municipal buildings, will get their water from Devens, where it is treated for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Harvard’s two town wells both contain PFAS levels that barely meet (and have in the past exceeded) the new PFAS standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency.
The town voted $4.85 million for the project in 2023, and an additional $2.31 million at Special Town Meeting in May. Due to a procedural technicality, bond counsel requested that a revote on the $2.31 million be taken at the upcoming Town Meeting on Sept. 28 (see details in “Fall Town Meeting only three weeks away; Select Board closes the 13-article warrant”). Town Administrator Dan Nason told the Press the revote will not delay construction.