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Guilford Selectmen Approve Noise Ordinance Waiver for Water Main Construction Near Daniel Ave

As the project to build a water main to Mulberry Point continues, construction crews have applied for a variance to the town’s noise ordinance in order to cross Tuttle’s Point causeway during low tide. The Board of Selectmen approved the waiver, which would originally have allowed crews to begin working at 6 a.m. as early as Nov. 4; the town’s noise ordinance otherwise restricts construction work that would result in noise above 45 decibels to the hours between 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays.

Construction crews are currently attempting to cross the causeway close to Daniel Avenue headed east toward Mulberry Point Road. Town Engineer Janice Plaziak said that while the low-tide work was not necessary, the contractor, True Blue, said it would allow the crews to work “more quickly, with less challenges and potential impacts.”

The other dates when the contractor was approved to work outside the noise ordinance are Wednesday to Friday, Nov. 13 to 15, Plaziak said. On those dates, they were approved to work in the evening until 10:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m., and 12:30 a.m., respectively.

Plaziak said that after more recent conversations with the contractor, she was “pretty sure” they would not work those dates either, though they are still approved to do so.

The contractors are not planning on doing any blasting, Plaziak told the Board of Selectmen. The contractor said it would reach out to residents who might be affected by the noise, which would include trucks and other construction vehicles, according to Plaziak.

The project, which broke ground last June, had been planned for more than a decade, running into a handful of snags over the last year or two.

Undertaken to address unsafe levels of salt (from seawater incursion) and coliform bacteria (from insufficient septic capacity) in Mulberry Point, Tuttles Point, and Long Cove, the project encountered funding problems in 2018. Construction bids came in well above budget, and even then the low bidder dropped out, leading the town to send the project out to bid for a second time. The town acquired a new low bidder, but the overall project cost jumped significantly, from a planned $3.4 million to $6.5 million.

For the project to move forward, the town had to find a way to cover that anticipated $3.1 million difference. In December 2018, voters approved a $3.1 million special appropriation at a town meeting, keeping the project moving forward.

While the town must approve the spending, all costs are to be paid by property owners tying into the system and the system’s operator, the Connecticut Water Company.

Plaziak said the project is still on schedule and is making “good progress.” An update provided by the contractor that was posted to Guilford’s website said that crossing the causeway before December would reduce the likelihood of weather-related delays.

No houses have been connected to the new water main at this point, Plaziak said, though there is “potential” that houses could have water “in the Lower Road vicinity.”