Sewer Commission Provides Update to Select Board

1. The Holliston Sewer Commission is up and running! Joining me tonight are Vice Chaiman Kevin Cornwell and Clerk Stacia Gelineau.
2. Since our first meeting on January 22nd, we have met weekly to tackle the complexity of Holliston’s Proposed Sewer system.
3. Our team approached this through a very deliberative manner that featured the following topics;

• Funding – what is current budget
• Facility readiness
• Engineering – review plan/Interview Engineer
• History – discuss the Town’s past efforts toward sewers
• Economic Development
• Future funding – grant opportunities and modeling of options to achieve Phase I outcome

4. Our Team had the system budget review for our first two meetings. Clearly the financing surrounding this project is the most important piece of the puzzle.
5. We then toured the treatment plant on Lydon Street to see firsthand how the system operates and what the recent $500K in improvements have done.
6. Our team then turned to the plan engineer, Pio Lombardo to take a deeper dive into his report to the Town in November 2024. This was a very productive meeting as the Commissioners finally had firsthand engineering explanation of the proposed above ground system solution and associated budget elements. I expect a follow-up (or two) with Pio will be forthcoming.
7. Our team discussed by laws for this program in an abstract manner, we ultimately felt that engaging town counsel was premature. We were given some various community by-laws to review but decided to table until/if funding develops.
8. With respect to learning all four comers of sewer system business in Holliston, the Commission recently welcomed Peter Egan and Paul LeBeau in to receive their respective personal recollections of the Towns sewering efforts in the 1970 and later in the late 1990s into early 2000s. We went over lessons learned and discussed our plan – which both gentlemen enthusiastically endorsed.
9. We will also meet with the Towns’ Economic Development Coordinator Melanie Hamblen. We discussed feedback she’s received from her commission as well as business owners in this zone. We wrapped up with a discussion about drawing out clear economic benefits this project will have. Melanie will share that content with James for inclusion in our grant application. We believe this element as well as the Town’s planned investment to bring on a Town Engineer to help shepherd those projects through to completion – will be a tremendous benefit to our grant application.
10. Prior to Travis leaving, we reviewed other comparable MWRA systems and their rate profiles. This occasion was the first time the funding model in Holliston was placed up against similar size systems for comparative cost analysis. In short, without substantial cost offset from outside grants (federal/state), this project cannot expect the ratepayers to afford this solution.
11. The Team began earnestly looking for available state grants to help offset costs and working with the Town’s Facility Manager, James Keast, filed a Notice of Intent with the OneStop grant portal for a MassWorks grant opportunity. Over the next couple of months, we will be looking to prepare our grant application for submission by June 4, 2025. Our grant will look to draw upon the financial investment the Town has made in its treatment plant and through the engineering report provided by Lombardo Associates – both funded though the ARPA federal grant process.
12. The Sewer Commission was made aware of a congressionally directed spending item that had been advanced in the federal budget through the work of Congressman Jim McGovern’s office. This $1.1M earmark is currently under consideration but with some degree of uncertainty. If Congress opts to do a full year continuing resolution, that would presumably wipe all of them out. If that is the case, however, the Congressman will likely resubmit them for the FY26 process.
13. After all of these weekly meetings since late January, we come before you this evening to update you on our efforts and cast an eye toward the next 6-12 months. Clearly this project needs substantial outside funding to proceed. We hope to have an answer on the MassWorks application by mid-to late September 2025 (just prior to Fall TM). We are currently not counting on the federal earmark but will not give up the task of asking! Indeed, there are other grants to examine as well.
14. One item our Commission will examine is the feasibility of proceeding with this plan in the event we receive less than the $7.5M we will ask for. We believe there is a modest path that can begin without full funding, but that scope is yet to be defined. We’ll examine in late 2025.
15. Our Commission will move to monthly meetings following our meeting this Thursday March 13, 2025. We will focus on;

• Completing the best and most complete application for this project – by June 4, 2025
• Bringing the new TM up to speed on our priorities
• Welcoming the EDC and business owners in for closer dialogue
• Welcoming effect residents in for a closer dialogue
• Engaging the Finance Committee, when applicable, to discuss grant funding and possible operational costs
• Engaging Town Counsel to begin drafting by-laws once funding is secured to take on applicable scope to begin this phase.

Finally, on behalf of my fellow Commissioners, we’d like to that Travis for his brain dump and files before he left, and we’d like to thank James Keast. James is a tremendous asset to the Town. He’s been at ALL our meetings and is an endless resource to us.

Thank you – we’d welcome your questions!
Holliston Sewer Commission
John Cronin, Chair
Kevin Cornwell, Vice Chair
Stacia Gelineau, Clerk