Southbridge DPW Subcommittee Approves New Mechanic Hire and Road Contract Change Order

SOUTHBRIDGE -- March 18, 2026, Southbridge DPW Subcommittee unanimously confirmed a new assistant mechanic hire and approved a $14,877.62 road contract change order at its March 18 meeting. The four-member quorum voted 4-0 to confirm the town manager's appointment of Jeffrey Bailey as assistant mechanic for the DPW, effective pending completion of a medical screening and state ethics requirements. The town manager told the subcommittee that without the position filled, the town recently paid an outside vendor $200 per hour to service equipment that an in-house mechanic would handle. The same 4-0 vote approved Change Order No. 1 to the Keating contract under the Pave 25 road improvement program, drawing $14,877.62 from prior-year Chapter 90 funds to cover additional milling and paving completed in the field. Following the votes, DPW leadership outlined an aggressive summer construction schedule anchored by deep rehabilitation work on East Main Street, River Street, and two stretches of River Crane, all targeted for completion alongside a CDBG-funded North Street project before the end of June.