During a tour of the town, officials said the 600-acre Brimfield State Forest is strewn with knocked-down trees and poses a serious fire risk because equipment can not gain entry.
ÂBrimfield Selectman Steve Fleshman, left, speaks with state Secretary of Administration and Finance Jay Gonzalez on the side of Paige Hill Road, an area that was hard hit by the June 1 tornado.BRIMFIELD — Gov. Deval L. Patrick’s budget chief has promised to look into concerns raised by Brimfield selectmen Wednesday about the amount a company on the state bid list wanted to charge the town for debris removal in the days following the June 1 tornado that killed one resident, destroyed 42 homes, closed roads and left many acres of broken trees.
A company on the state bid list from Florida asked Brimfield if they could do the work for between $8 million and $10 million. Brimfield instead found an Upton company – not on the state list – that did the work for $420,000.
Neither state nor town officials have suggested anything improper was done by the company wanting the multimillion dollar bid, AshBritt Environmental. It is well-known among local officials for its work and the millions of dollars the company charged following the June tornado and the Oct. 29 snowstorm.
Ashbritt was the only company on the state list that could be hired while bypassing the time-consuming request for proposals process. Officials generally gave the company high marks for its cleanup work. A company spokesman could not be reached immediately for comment.
Secretary of Administration and Finance Jay Gonzalez along with members of Patrick’s administration and an aide to Sen. Stephen Brewer, D-Barre, met with Brimfield selectmen during a board meeting to gauge how the cleanup effort is going nearly a year later and to listen to concerns.
Selectmen told Gonzalez the president of AshBritt Environmental, Randy Perkins, came to Brimfield on June 5 saying his company could take care of the tree removal.
Perkins stated, “The town is probably looking in the $8 million to $10 million range to get the town back on its feet. Worst case scenario, the cost to the town could be $1 million after FEMA reimbursement,” Brimfield selectmen’s minutes from the June 5 meeting show. FEMA is the federal emergency management agency.
Meeting minutes from June 6 show Perkins telling selectmen that “Wilbraham, Monson and Springfield have contracted” with AshBritt.
Instead of using AshBritt, Brimfield Highway Surveyor Robert Hanna chose J.M. Cook Co. Inc., of Upton.
A document provided by the town shows Cook completed the debris removal in August, and payment of $420,400 was approved in December. Town officials say AshBritt and Cook agreed to remove debris from the streets and 10 feet on either side of the affected roadways.
“There are people out there who are capable and can save a lot of taxpayer dollars who could be on the state list,” Brimfield Selectman Steve Fleshman told Gonzalez.
“Yes, I will look into that. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. ... That is not how state contracts are supposed to work; that is surprising to me,” Gonzalez said. “You are complaining to the right place.”
Town officials say Brimfield incurred $582,067.76 in tornado-related expenses, that the state reimbursed $170,000 in December and that the $412,067.76 promised from FEMA has not been paid.
During a tour of the town, officials told Gonzalez the 600-acre state forest is strewn with knocked-down trees and poses a serious fire risk because equipment can not gain entry.