Medford Conservation Commission Issues MWRA Pipeline Order, Continues Condon Shell Valve Hearing

MEDFORD -- September 16, 2020, Medford Conservation Commission closed a hearing and issued conditions for an MWRA pipeline project, continued a second MWRA matter pending more information, and certified remediation work complete at Riverbend Park. The commission voted unanimously to issue a standard order of conditions for Massachusetts Water Resources Authority pipeline rehabilitation work at the Malden River and Winterbrook, attaching requirements that Winterbrook construction occur during low-flow periods between June and September 2021 and that any disturbed stream bed be returned to pre-existing grade. A separate MWRA proposal to replace pressure reducing valves in the Condon Shell parking lot, part of a regional water system redundancy program involving deep-rock tunnels serving the metropolitan area, was continued to October 7 after members flagged missing information on tree replacement, compensatory storage island plantings, and an incremental cut-and-fill table required under 310 CMR 10.57. The commission also voted unanimously to issue a certificate of compliance for DEP file 215-0216, covering targeted contamination excavation at Riverbend Park completed in January 2020. Commission member Heidi announced she will seek a Community Preservation Committee feasibility-and-design grant of between $17,000 and $20,000 for a stormwater BMP near the Riverbend bike path corridor, citing $2.5 million in requests against only $1.6 million available this grant cycle.