Malden gets millions from FEMA to revamp utility system

The city of Malden has accepted a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant that will pay 75 percent of costs to improve the electric system. City council members unanimously supported moving forward with the work and last week, engineers surveyed the project needs.

The first utility bills including a rate increase needed to pay the city's costs were sent to customers Friday.

"This is a pretty good deal," said Mayor Ray Santie. "We had so much damage from the ice storm, we lost so much infrastructure, FEMA said they would help us rebuild the system. But they didn't want to do it as it was, they want it built to current standards."

The city had plans to make improvements, but could not afford to do this much work on its own, Santie said.

Malden's utility system dates back to 1892. Improvements have been made through the years within the boundaries of the city budget and with an eye to keeping customer costs low, according to officials.

"This is the first complete rebuild in the history of the town," Santie said. "The purpose is to make the electric system better than it was."

Work to be done includes replacing about 70 miles of electric line and some 1,100 primary power poles, as well as cross arms and other accessory equipment, said Brian Haley, assistant utility director.

The grant will not pay for any work done within the city's utility plant or for about $2 million in project costs for some work including replacing switch gears at stations or involving conductors.

"The system is aged, and after the ice storm it is in really rough shape," Haley said. "Without the FEMA money, we couldn't do a complete rebuild. We would be doing this in baby steps and might never get it all done."

FEMA estimated the project would cost about $8 million, but Malden's engineering firm believes the total will be closer to $10 to $15 million, with $2 million of that cost excluded from the FEMA grant, Haley said.

Malden has applied for a Community Block Development Grant, which could pay 15 percent of the costs, Santie said, but it is uncertain if the city will receive the money.

A rate increase of about one cent per kilowatt hour will be needed until those costs are paid, Santie said.

"That's about $10 more per month per 1,000 kilowatts," Santie said. "Or for me, about $260 more per year. We planned for the worst-case scenario."

If city costs are not as high, the duration of the rate increase will reflect that, according to Santie.

The project should be put to bid in mid-January. Work will start in the spring, weather permitting, Haley said.

Any work to be paid for with FEMA money must be completed by August 2011. Work not included in the FEMA grant should be finished by December 2011, Haley said.

"There will be some interruption of services, but we will make it as minimal as possible," he said.