West Harwich Road Construction Starts In Mid-September

HARWICH – In the next few weeks, $9 million worth of road construction, water main replacement, and dry sewer installation will get underway along Route 28 from South Street in Harwich Port to the Dennis town line. The work could take five years to complete.

 The project will be done in two phases. The first phase will be conducted by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) and will include installation of town water mains and a dry sewer system, reconstruction of the Route 28 roadway, sidewalk improvements and village amenities along the one-mile stretch from the Herring River to the Dennis town line.

The starting date for that project is expected to be Sept. 14 with CC Construction Inc., the phase one contractor, planning to mobilize at the staging area between Sept. 8 and Sept. 11. It is anticipated that the MassDOT phase could take five years to complete based on the need for utilities adjustments, according to Thomas Currier, a MassDOT project manager. 

Phase two is a town water-wastewater commission project replacing antiquated water mains from the east side of Herring River to South Street along the south side of Route 28.

Dan Pelletier, the resident engineer for the project, said last Thursday in an informational session on the projects that there have been six water main breaks along the stretch since 2014. One in January 2018 took 21 hours to repair. A new 12-inch ductile water main will replace aging sections of six-, eight- and 10-inch pipes. There will be new hydrants and gate valves, improving domestic and fire water services, he said.

There will be subsurface drilling beneath the Herring River to connect the water mains in the two phases along a stretch of 2.4 miles.

Pelletier said Dig It Construction LLC, a Harwich-based company, has the contract for phase two and plans to have their buckets in the ground by mid-October. The phase two excavation will start at the Herring River side and work its way toward Harwich Port. Pelletier said the plan is to work throughout the winter with a construction completion timeline of spring 2027. Daily work hours will be 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Temporary pavement will be put in place at the end of each day, he said. 

When the phase two water main project is completed, there will be a curb-to-curb resurfacing of Route 28, Pelletier said. 

 The phase one project on the west side of the Herring River incorporates town water mains and dry sewers while the MassDOT construction is ongoing. Pelletier said the cooperative agreement saves the town between $700,000 and $900,000. There will be no construction work on the phase one project from Memorial Day to mid-September.

The use of the sewer is scheduled for phase four in the draft update of the town’s comprehensive wastewater management plan, potentially a decade away. The town must first determine where its sewage will be treated. The town will buy grinder pumps for residents along that stretch, but Water-Wastewater Commissioner Noreen Donahue said installation and use of the grinder pumps is at least 10 years or longer away. 

 There were several questions from residents about the grinder pumps and the connection to the sewer installation. The town would be extending service connections from the sewer line to individual property lines, and property owners could choose where along the property line the connection is placed. Those issues would have to be worked out between the property owner and the engineer they hire to locate the sewer line from the residence to the sewer stub, said Jeff Gregg, project director for GHD, Inc.

 Gregg said some of the connection stub locations may have to be altered due to locations of other utilities, but there would be engineers available to assist with relocations. 

 There were questions about the size of the grinder pumps, whether they could handle larger facilities, and what happens when there is a power outage. Gregg said the pumps would be able to handle 90 percent of residences and officials will work with property owners to accommodate the sizes needed.

Water-Wastewater Superintendent Jason Trepanier said there is limited storage capacity should power go out, but the pumps can be set up to function through the use of a home generator.

Jennefer Lundell, representing the Murray Lane Association, questioned potential disruptions in getting in and out of their driveway. She said there are a dozen working people living at the location. Pelletier said there will be people at the construction site to assist with those issues. Communication with homeowners will include knocking on doors, and the contractor won’t start digging if there is a conflict, or they will use road plates to assure passage. There will also be police officers on hand to assist with school bus access for children, he said. 

There will be disruptions to town water access, and Pelletier said 36-hour advance notice will be provided to allow for planning. Several means of communication, including using the town’s reverse 911 call system, will be used. Two temporary mains will be necessary along Earle Road and Grey Neck Road for a period of time to work around the Nantucket electric cable. 

 “We’ll do what we can as soon as we can to have you back online,” Pelletier said.

One lane along Route 28 will be open during construction periods.

Route 28 resident Duncan Berry wanted to know how much of the roadway would be disturbed on a daily basis. Pelletier said for phase two, Dig It Construction estimated 220 feet a day. But Gregg was not sure about the phase one project. He said he had a construction meeting scheduled on Monday with the contractor and would seek an estimate. 

Patricia Tworek, a member of the board of directors of Chase Library, expressed concerns about disruptions to library service. Tworek said she heard MassDOT was planning to use a section of the library lawn for storage and a tree and pole on the property might have to be removed. Gregg said he would get answers to these questions in the construction meeting