Public Works

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Responsibilities

The Department of Public Works (DPW) maintains and improves 150+ miles of paved streets and unpaved (gravel) public ways, 85+ miles of sidewalks, 10,000+ public shade trees, 245+ acres of athletic fields, recreational parks, facilities, street parks and cemetery grounds, 11+ miles of bicycle paths and bicycle path greenspaces, 38 bridges, Musante Beach, the Connecticut River Greenway, operations of four cemeteries and more than 150 vehicles and pieces of specialized construction equipment. The DPW also provides rapid response for snow and ice events and other inclement weather conditions. Other areas of ongoing maintenance include road safety signage, traffic signals and all pavement and pedestrian crosswalk markings.

The DPW manages operations and maintains and upgrades assets in the Water, Sewer, Stormwater/Flood Control and Solid Waste Divisions. This includes maintenance, oversight and long term capital planning for facilities in excess of: 120 miles of stormwater drain pipes, 4,000 catch basins and intakes, 5,000 sewer and drain manhole structures, 350 outfalls, 150 culverts, 6 miles of drainage channels and ditches, 150 miles of water mains, 5,000 water valves, 1,400 hydrants, 110 miles of sanitary sewer pipes and 3,900 acres of watershed land surrounding the City’s drinking water reservoirs. In addition, the DPW operates and maintains a flood control pump station, two levee systems, a water treatment plant, five dams, three active surface water reservoirs, two active wells, two water pump stations, a wastewater treatment plant, seven sewer pump stations, two transfer stations and a capped landfill. The DPW also oversees third party operation of a landfill gas to energy facility and 3.17 megawatt photovoltaic solar array.

Total operating budgets are in excess of $20,000,000 and capital expenditures average in excess of $20,000,000 per year.