The Town of Danvers will replace a nearly decade-old street sweeper after the Finance Committee approved a general-fund capital outlay allocation that includes a $100,000 tax-supported contribution to a $300,000 replacement sweeper. Water and sewer enterprise budgets will each cover an additional $100,000 portion, making the full replacement cost $300,000 split across three funds.

Town Engineer Stephen King, acting as the Public Works presenter, told the Finance Committee the sweeper’s uses span multiple divisions: street sweeping required under the town’s MS4 NPDES stormwater permit, cleanup after water-main breaks, and sweeping prior to paving or after water-distribution projects. King said the sweeper removes roughly 500 tons of sediment annually and is used multiple times a day in some water-break responses.

Why it matters: the sweeper serves regulatory (NPDES) and operational needs across public-works, water and sewer divisions. The committee’s decision spreads the cost among the three budgets that use the machine.

Details from the hearing
- Cost, funding and procurement timeline: The replacement sweeper is budgeted at $300,000; Danvers’ share in the general-fund capital outlay is $100,000, with $100,000 planned in the water operating budget and $100,000 in the sewer operating budget. Town staff estimated 90 days from order to delivery for a stock Elgin sweeper; warranty is commonly 2–3 years (final warranty details to be confirmed with vendor).
- Existing equipment and trade-in: The existing sweeper is a 2016/2017 model and approaching the department’s typical 10-year replacement schedule. King said possible trade-in or auction recovery is roughly $20,000–$30,000. Committee members discussed the alternative of spending a large overhaul (one estimate cited $75,000) to extend the old unit’s life by a few years vs. buying new.
- Uses across divisions: King explained the machine’s regulatory role under the town’s MS4 (NPDES) permit, heavier-duty pick-ups after water-main breaks (the town averages about 16–20 breaks in heavier winters) and pre-paving cleanup after distribution projects.
- Lifecycle and maintenance: King said sweepers have limited service lives; Danvers programs a 10-year replacement cadence. Mechanical elements (brushes, hydraulic components) have recurring replacement cycles and the body can suffer corrosion from street use.

Selected quotes
"So the sweeper, as you see, it's split up in 3 different ways...we have it split up once in the tax supported for a hundred thousand, in the water division for a hundred thousand, and then also the sewer division for a hundred thousand," Town Engineer Stephen King said.
"We usually have ours programmed for a capital replacement in 10 years, and we're coming up on 10 years," King said, describing why department staff recommended replacement rather than a major overhaul.

Next steps and public notes
- Town staff will finalize vendor warranty details and confirm delivery timeline (estimated 90 days from order). The three-budget funding plan will be implemented as line items in the general-fund capital outlay and the water and sewer operating budgets.
- Staff will bring definitive procurement documents (quotes, warranty language) before the town as part of normal capital purchasing procedures.

Ending: The committee approved the funding share in its vote on the general-fund capital outlay; the sweeper purchase will proceed through the town’s standard procurement and capital-asset procedures.