Department of Public Works

LATEST NEWS:

Hydrant Flushing Notice:The Manchester Water Department will begin to flush the Town’s fire hydrants on Monday June 1^st. Flushing will occur on Monday and Tuesday evenings after 7pm for the month of June.  Flushing will begin on upper Pine Street and the side streets off Pine Street, then Bridge Street and West Manchester. During the flushing process, the water can become discolored and residents may wish to avoid washing clothes during this time. If discoloration appears in the water at your faucet run the water for a few minutes and it should clear. We thank you for your co-operation and patience.

Sewer Mains Pipeline Work: Begins May 13-28, 2020. Contractor Green Mountain Pipeline Services will be cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) lining the sewer main in the area along Sawmill brook. : Pipeline Work Notice

Intersection Work: Roadwork will begin Friday, April 17, 2020 at the intersection of School and Central and then Union at Beach. The work includes realigning the curb line and repaving the sidewalks and roadway. Details will be onsite however it will be a construction zone and vehicles and pedestrians should use caution. We expect the work to be complete within 4 weeks. We apologize for the inconvenience, appreciate your patience and will post updates as the work progresses.

Transfer Station stickers for: one trip passes, metal items, TV/computer monitors, appliances and refrigerant items can still be purchased during the Town Hall closure by mailing in a check and a request for the type of sticker(s) you require. The Town Clerk will mail back the sticker(s) to you. Please mail to: Town Hall, 10 Central St, Town Clerk, Manchester MA 01944

All wooden/fabric large items are curbside collections only and need to be scheduled directly with Waste Management and cannot go to the transfer station.

Trash/Recycle UPDATE due to Coronavirus 3-31-20

All trash must be ENTIRELY contained within a tied orange bag. Nothing must be sticking out. For collector safety any bag not following these rules will be oops tagged, reported to the WM call center, and left behind. It will not be picked up as a missed collection. Large curbside items have to be called into WM as a special collection:  1-800-972-4545

Waste Management have re-opened call center operations now they have all workers set up to work remotely. Please call the usual 1-800-972-4545 number to report any missed collections and to schedule curbside large item pick-ups. CURBSIDE trash/recycle continues to operate as normal during these times, following all the regular curbside rules: must be curbside with trash fully contained within orange bags by 7am on your collection day, recycling rules still apply. The Transfer Station is open as usual for orange-bagged trash and recycling. As always no curbside-type bulk items can be taken to the Transfer Station. Updates will follow if circumstances change.

COMPOST SITE: Opening 4/4/20 for the 2020 season. Please click here for full information.

JOB OPENINGS:

Seasonal DPW full time positions: CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS and CLICK HERE for APPLICATION FORM

SUMP PUMPS:

A friendly reminder from DPW:  there should be no discharge of sump pumps, gutters, water run-off from personal property directly or indirectly onto public right of ways which includes roads and sidewalks (General By-Law article X, section 10, page 26). The discharge of water to these surfaces can create ice which is a significant safety hazard for walkers and cars alike. Discharge to these locations is a fine-able offense per the bylaws. Please immediately remove or redirect any devices that discharge or flow to these locations.

Local businesses are reminded that no personal items (benches, planters etc) are to be placed on any public right of way/sidewalk (General By-law article X, section 1, page 25). This is a safety hazard and impedes the Town’s ability to undertake snow clearance.

CLICK HERE: 2019 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report (CCR)

New water rates went into effect for FY 2020 CLICK HERE.

Power Outage and Downed Trees in Wires

For power outage updates or to report downed trees in wires, please call National Grid directly: 1-800-322-3223 or on your mobile device at: www.ngrid.com/mobile or text: STORM to 64743 or online at www.nationalgridus.com/outagecentral Please note, this link is only active during storms.

Click here: 2020 Waste Management Collection Calendar

There is a lot of mis-information circulating, regarding where Manchester’s recycling goes - please read the following 2 page fact sheet released directly from Waste Management that details where different items go after being sorted in the Billerica recycling facility.

CLICK HERE: Fact Sheet - Recycling 2020

RECYCLING GUIDELINES 2020: Click Here

CLICK HERE: Recycling/plastic bags Flyer The Latest Recycling Flyer was mailed out with recent water bills but some households on private water supply and some apartment residents did not receive this flyer. Click the link above to read/download.

On 4/10/19, DPW staff toured the Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) where all our recyclables are taken for processing. Our recyclables are being audited for contamination, so far it is clear that the worst issue is plastic bags, plastic wrap and things in plastic covers such as mailings and magazines. The most alarming thing is some residents are putting their entire recycle deposit in large (13 gallon) tied white bin liners - these are entirely rejected, the whole bag full regardless of their content. 

The Town is launching a Recycling Spring Clean-up program. 

Starting 4/29/19 residents who do not follow the DEP recycle guidelines: CLICK HERE will see an OOPS sticker detailing the issue on their recycle bin, WM will record the location and leave the contaminated load behind. The resident has the choice of taking it to the transfer station OR putting it out the following week, ONCE IT HAS BEEN CLEANED UP. WM will not come out as a missed collection for contaminated loads. The costs of processing recyclables is based on two factors, current market rate and contamination levels - please read and follow these guidelines and clean up recyclables to prevent the Town’s processing fee from rising.

New Town Street Lights:

Light installation work by Pine Ridge Technologies (PRT) started 1/3/19. Light replacements will start at downtown and work out radially from Town Hall.

Bulk-Item Curbside Pickup Changes – As of January 1/1/19, Waste Management will be facilitating all curbside bulk item pickups – no more bulk item green sticker sales at Town Hall. This will enable residents to call Waste Management (800-972-4545) at their convenience to schedule and pay for a pickup. Residents will also be able to put out more than one bulk item per week! Examples of bulk items include box springs/mattresses, carpet/carpet padding, rigid plastics, chairs, couches and other wooden furniture. The fee will be $27.00 per item beginning 1/1/19. This will also allow Waste Management to know exactly what needs to be picked up each week and where, saving residents the hassle of a missed pickup. Questions? Contact the DPW at 978-526-1242. A 2020 Waste Management Calendar/information pamphlet will be mailed out to all Manchester residences by early January 2020, if you have not received one please collect one from the DPW office in Town Hall.

Does your bulk item still have some life left to it? There are a few options available locally that may be able to re-use your bulk item! Contact Beverly Bootstraps at 978-921-4710 or Second Glance in Gloucester 978-283-4798 for more information. CLICK HERE: Comprehensive Disposal List 2020

RIGID PLASTICS:

Due to the China-crisis recycling issues, The Town of Manchester is not currently able to separate out and send rigid plastics for recycle. These items; 5 gallon pails, children’s outdoor toys, plastic totes, garden chairs etc must now be disposed of either curbside in an orange trash bag or if too large, by pre-scheduling and prepayment with Waste Management as a curbside bulk item pick-up (800-972-4545). Multiple items per week can be scheduled. Please remember all trash, recycle and large items must be curbside by 7 am on your collection day.

Battery Information:

The Transfer Station now accepts standard Auto batteries for recycling with a $10 sticker pre-purchased from the Town Clerk’s office in Town Hall. Please see the attendant on arrival at the Transfer Station.

Please note AAA, AA, C, D etc type small regular batteries are not recyclable and should be put in your orange trash bags.

SCAM ALERT! Many companies claim their plastic bags are compostable. Bags must say "ASTM 6400 certified" to be compostable. Biodegradable is not compostable. An alternative is to use double-bagged paper grocery bags.