Dear Elected Officials for Charlestown, Walpole and Claremont:

In this update, I have included some of the more technical aspects of the Charlestown Rt 12 Repair project, which underscore the complexities being undertaken. 

On December 7, 2021, the contractor, Casella Construction, Inc., filed the Railroad  Right of Entry request.  The Railroad is reviewing the request.   

A project preconstruction meeting was held on December 9, 2021 at 10:00 am with the Department and the contractor, Casella Construction.  A construction schedule is still under development, as Casella further understands the requirements and completes submittals. Over the next 3 weeks, Casella will be submitting the following:

o    Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) – a meeting will be held this week between the Erosion Control Subcontractor, Bureau of Environment, Bureau of Construction and the subconsultants working for DOT to discuss the erosion control and construction sequencing.

o    Track and Soil Nail Wall Deformation Monitoring Plan – a system is required by the Railroad to monitor the railroad track, embankment, groundwater, and any soil nail wall movement. The Railroad requires seven (7) days of monitoring the railroad track and embankment prior to starting any soil nail work. There can be no work in the railroad right-of-way until the initial monitoring is complete.

o    Soil Nail Wall & Slope Construction Plan will need to be prepared and submitted for review by NHDOT and the Railroad.  At the Preconstruction Meeting, we learned that there is a 5-6 week lead time for the soil nails.  The Bureau of Construction is strategizing how to support the Contractor to be able to minimize risk. In addition, the Soil Nail Wall plan requires testing of the soil nails and wall facing. Prior to beginning construction of the soil nail wall, a test panel is required by the Railroad.  The test panel will take approximately 2 weeks to drill, grout, cure, test, and complete the facing.  Information gathered from the initial testing period will be significant in determining when construction will begin on the soil nail wall construction. 

o    There are other submittals required; however, the submittals are typical of construction and the Department is committed to reviewing these in a timely manner.

Assuming Casella receives Railroad Right of Entry by the end of December 2021, along with Railroad approval of submissions (listed above), Casella intends to mobilize in the second week of January, 2022.  Mobilization means Casella will have the right to enter the railroad property and install the track monitoring system. Once the track has been monitored for 7 days, Casella can begin drilling the monitoring wells and inclinometers that will be used to measure groundwater and soil nail wall movement. While the contractor is drilling, Liberty Utilities will need to de-energize the utility lines. 

Until the soil nail wall can be constructed, Casella is working to order the soil nail materials and file the required submissions.

I will plan to provide another update in 2 weeks, or sooner if there are important developments.

My Best,

Kathy