Old Reservoir Dam Restoration Project to Begin; Wilson Dam Work Progresses

By Kim Siebert MacPhail

Bedford’s first Town Seal

Weston and Sampson, the same crew that is currently working on the Wilson Mill Dam site, has been awarded the contract to begin work on the Shawsheen Reservoir Dam site. The company put forward the second-lowest bid of $539,762,and was chosen for the project when questions of reliability surfaced with regard to lowest bidder.

“[Weston and Sampson] are doing very well. They’re a little bit ahead of schedule and they expect to move the crew that’s currently at Wilson Mill over to the Reservoir Dam once they wind down a bit. We’ve been very pleased with their work; the big issue on a dam project is how well you handle the water,” said DPW Engineer Adrienne St. John.

For the Shawsheen Reservoir project, the dam will be rebuilt and a prefabricated pedestrian bridge will be added in order to maintain the trail systems through the area. An historic well-house roof will also be restored.

Get The Bedford Citizen in your inbox!



“I am so glad to see this happening,” remarked Selectman Cathy Cordes. “It’s certainly taken a while,” added Selectman Bill Moonan.

The project should be finished by April 2013.

In an update on the Wilson Mill project, St. John says that the canoe launch has been laid out but still needs a stone dust covering. The downstream walls and the head wall, including the overflow culvert, will be done by week’s end. “Really the next big item—the last item—is to physically construct the semi-circular weir. That’s on schedule to start in the next week-and-a-half to two weeks. There’s a lot of form work, steel work, concrete work….Then they’ll put in the grand façade and then on the floor, between the semi-circular weir and the actual outlet, they’ll pour concrete and lay in some rocks so it looks more natural. Like an old mill.”

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Subscribe
Notify of

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

All Stories

What’s Bedford Thinking about the Red Sox?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Junior Landscaping
Go toTop