Bellingham board revises scope of sewer expansion – Milford Daily News

Mike Gleason Daily News Staff @MGleason_MDN

BELLINGHAM - The town has revised a proposed project that would bring sewer service to the Wethersfield neighborhood, and will look to speak to residents in the coming months.

The Board of Selectmen decided the narrow the scope of the project after seeking feedback from those who live on certain streets within the neighborhood.

Town Administrator Denis Fraine said the board had opted to remove Wethersfield Road and Kathy Drive from the project, citing resident disinterest. Town officials had noted that, as those areas are less dense, the cost for adding sewer there would be higher per household.

Though officials had also considered cutting Monique Drive, Fraine said those residents had shown enough of an interest that the street was retained within the project.

Fraine said there will be an informational meeting for the neighborhood as a whole at Bellinghan High School on Sept. 13 at 7 p.m.

Selectmen Chairman Michael Soter said the meeting would discuss the scope of the project, project the betterment costs for neighborhood houses and gauge support for the work.

"To me, the pulse of the neighborhood is very 50-50," he said, noting the project will not pass if there is no local groundswell. "It's up to the people to decide, not the Board of Selectmen."

Soter said residents of the neighborhood had approached him in the past, asking the town to consider sewers in Wethersfield. The lot sizes in the neighborhood are small, he said, and septic systems cut into the usable portion of residents' plots. He said, beyond that, a sewer hookup generally makes a house more valuable to potential buyers.

A proposed Taunton Street rebuild forced the issue, Soter said. As the main sewer line would be under that road, the sewer expansion would either have to take place during that project, or be put on hold for years.

Mike Gleason can be reached at 508-634-7546 or mgleason@wickedlocal.com. For news throughout the day, follow him on Twitter @MGleason_MDN.

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Bellingham board revises scope of sewer expansion - Milford Daily News