Board of Health Director Andrew Petty announced at Tuesday’s Board of Health Meeting that the Transfer Station will be receiving a new temporary trailer on Nov. 30.
In July, newly elected Board member Tom McMahon called for a vote to replace the trailer before winter was in full swing, saying that it would be a “very good sign of good faith to the employees.” The vote passed unanimously.
The current trailer, which was originally scheduled to be replaced after the winter, was a point of concern to many as it has begun to deteriorate and is reaching the end of its lifespan.
At the July meeting, Marblehead Housing Authority member Terri Tauro explained why she felt the trailer needs to be replaced before the new year.
“It’s seven years old… I doubt that this project is going to be done in two months,” Tauro said. “I think another winter and that trailer could be scary. I think the employees will be really happy that that’s being done for them.”
Petty said that the cost of replacing the trailer will be around $6,000. He added that the timeline of taking down and replacing the trailer will be roughly two and a half days, and it will hopefully be fully operational on Saturday, Dec. 2.
The trailer is staying in the same location, outside of the footprint for the Transfer Station’s new scale house, which is a part of a multi-million-dollar redesign.
“We’re hoping that we can stay open for residence, but there’s going to be some moving parts in the front, so there might be times when we have to completely close the facility,” Petty said.
Once the scale comes offline, however, the station will be closed for commercial use during that span.
Toward the end of his update, Petty recommended holding off on opening bidding for the Transfer Station redesign project until the new year, as better offers may be on the table.