Debris Removal Cost Estimates Continue to Drop

Debris cleanup efforts didn't exactly go as planned for the town of Southington. Unknown funding and the need to wait on both FEMA and the state left the town unsure what to expect as Garry Brumback sought assistance in cleaning up the debris that was left behind.

But the delays and unknowns served as a positive for the town in the long run, allowing Brumback to secure contracts with debris management and cleanup agencies that has helped reduce the costs to the taxpayer considerably.

Officials anticipated that costs for debris cleanup following the rare October snowstorm that wreaked havoc on trees and left 70 percent of the community without power, but as Wood Resource Recovery, the company hired to do the physical debris removal, finishes up collection over the next couple weeks, that estimate has now dropped to under $700,000.

“We were able to go out to bid on this rather than relying on state contracts, and as a result we were able to reduce estimates to under $1 million,” Brumback said. “We were waiting to hear about the FEMA reimbursement and made a request to go out to bid. The delays allowed us to go out to bid and secure serves at a greatly reduced cost.”

In hiring Wood Resource Services, a Florida-based company that had sent workers to Connecticut prior to the storm’s arrival, the town saw the cost per cubic yard of removal drop from $21 if state contractors were used to just $5.90.

The closest bid local company available was Marek Bros. Construction of Southington, which offered to do the job for $8 per cubic yard, but would charge an additional $12 per cubic yard for anything moved beyond 16 miles. Marek Bros. Never submitted a final estimate in the bid, which was for the removal of 50,000 cubic yards of debris.

Initially, the estimates were that debris removal would cost $965,000 not including management, but town residents took full advantage of the extended drop off hours at the Bulky Waste Transfer Station and dropped off more than 50 percent of the estimated debris in November, allowing the costs to come down even further.

Council members noted that while they would have liked to see the work go to a local company, it was impossible to justify the added cost. Al Natelli Jr. also said that part of the reason for the discrepancies in the estimates were due to private sector cleanup jobs offered to local companies – work which has kept them busy since the storm and increased their business even without the town’s contract.

Natelli and Councilman Peter Romano each praised the town staff, noting that with a approved as part of an emergency declaration for the state, the town will have a personal bill of less than $200,000 for debris removal.

Brumback cautioned that theses figures do not include other storm related costs including overtime for personnel and property damages. These costs will also be eligible for 75 percent reimbursement, he said Monday, but are still being calculated.

“There were a lot of towns that knew FEMA money and didn’t due the due diligence that (our town staff) did,” Romano said. “That deserves recognition.”

For a complete list of bids, be sure to .