Blandford Approves $34,000 in SCADA Change Orders, Hears $1.5 Million Grant Briefing

BLANDFORD — March 2, 2026 — Blandford Select Board approves two SCADA change orders totaling more than $34,000 and hears that a suite of grants could cover most of the water work required under a state consent decree. Meeting jointly with the Water Department on March 2, the board unanimously approved change order 7A for $12,319.08 to redesign the pump station's emergency stop circuit, then approved change order 8 for $22,271.75 — interest charges that accrued after the town held contractor Bay State's paperwork unsigned for five to six months, stalling the project past its February 2025 substantial-completion deadline. Both sums come from the Water Department's capital expenditure account. A consultant then briefed the board on a grant package that includes an $80,000 USDA Rural Development construction grant for the raw water inlet, a $290,000 EPA grant for ozone system construction, a $350,000 Rural Development design grant already under contract, and a $1,092,000 congressional earmark requiring a $273,000 local match. "You don't want to lose what is $700,000 right over $273,000," the consultant told the board, urging action before the fiscal year 2026 application deadline.