SAUGUS — The town will borrow more than $1 million to change more than 3,000 street lights to LED lights and more than $800,000 for new town vehicles.
Town Meeting members approved the appropriation during a Special Town Meeting Monday night.
Saugus has been approved for a Massachusetts Area Planning Council (MAPC) and Department of Energy Resources (DOER) LED Streetlight Rapid Retrofit program, which is contingent upon Town Meeting’s approval of the project. The conversion has an estimated cost of $1,035,000, which will be borrowed by the town up front. Funding from MAPC and DOER will kick in once the project is completed and the town will be left with a $597,000 bill. National Grid estimates the return on the investment, with the incentives and grant, is less than 2½ years.
“From that point on there will just be pure savings,” said Ken DePatto, chairman of the Finance Committee.
Town Manager Scott Crabtree said that, with the approval, an audit of the existing lights would begin right away. The town already owns the street lights.
“This is like next generation, third-, fourth-, fifth-generation LED lighting,” said Crabtree. “We’ve been looking at it since I became manager in 2012. The problem is the lights were all new and there was a lot of light pollution. They’re able to now really focus and limit where the light goes and they’re very illuminating.”
The project should take about a year, said Crabtree. Crews typically convert between 18 and 20 street lights each day.
“It will save on maintenance and electricity bills,” he said.
The town will borrow $820,000 to purchase new equipment and town vehicles.
The money will cover the cost of four new police cruisers and a bucket truck, compressor truck, pay loader and a pickup truck for the Department of Public Works.
Several of the vehicles being replaced are 15 to 25 years old, no longer pass inspection and require continued maintenance, according to the Finance Committee’s recommendation. All the vehicles are used on a daily basis, requiring that they be fully functional and safe.
The police cruisers will cost $220,000 to replace. The cost of the DPW vehicles will total $473,000, including the pay loader, the biggest ticket item, which will cost $180,000.
To comply with new OSHA guidelines, $57,000 will be borrowed for a new system that recharges oxygen tanks used by the Fire Department. The system the department is using is about 25 years old.
Two building maintenance ATVs for snow removal will cost $70,000.
All eight articles on the Special Town Meeting warrant passed unanimously.
