SAUGUS — There are electrical poles in the roadway on Collins Avenue, but they won’t be removed until National Grid pays a debt it owes to the town.
A representative from National Grid told selectmen Wednesday night that developers widened Collins Avenue, causing several electrical poles to be within the new roadway.
National Grid requested permission to relocate the poles, but the selectmen pointed out that the company owes the town about $16,000 for police and fire details related to electrical work.
In July, they threatened to deny all requests from the company until an outstanding balance of $47,000 was paid. National Grid paid more than half the balance within the next week.
“I think the last time you came before us, we were pretty direct in wanting to get paid before any work was done,” said Debra Panetta, chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen. “It has gotten better, but it’s still not paid up.”
Most of the unpaid bills are less than 60 days old, said Town Manager Scott Crabtree, who added that the timeline is “pretty standard for this business.” He suggested approving the relocation of the poles on the condition that all month-old bills are paid.
“They’ve cleaned up quite a bit,” said Crabtree.
Each time National Grid requests to install a pole, remove a double pole, or complete other work, the board makes the approval contingent upon the outstanding balance being paid, said Selectman Jeff Cicolini. But that hasn’t been happening. In July, the company had invoices dating back to January 2018.
Selectman Scott Brazis said he was standing by his July statement and would not approve the work until the town was paid.
“We were pretty explicit,” he said.
The panel voted 4-1 to continue the hearing until Sept. 18 to give National Grid two weeks to resolve the issue.
