Oh, yeah. Boast if you must. We in Woodstock are getting a brand new Muffin Monster.
Barrow, Alaska and McMurdo Station, Antarctica have one. But, no sorry, this is not a new chain bakery. Nor is it a new Sesame Street character. Rather, as the venerable Woodstock Selectboard found out this evening (Tuesday), the Muffin Monster is a piece of equipment that will grind up your raw sewer like no other to a liquid consistency that can then be pumped somewhere else.
Laugh, if you must, and we all did, but as the Woodstock Selectboard’s Preston Bristow explained in all seriousness, “It takes care of the BIG STUFF.” He said he meant, you know, “toys and things thrown down the toilet.” We didn’t pursue that line of questioning.
But, here’s why we’re getting a new muffin monster: The Town of Woodstock has a pumping station in West Woodstock conveniently located across from the White Cottage Snack Bar. In order to get West Woodstock sewage to our main plant in the East End of Woodstock we need more than gravity to, ahem, move things along (peristalsis and other organic functions not available on demand). So, we can’t pump any flow if there’s stuff clogging the pipes. That’s where our new Muffin Monster comes into play — Special grinding abilities, high torque, etc…will take care of just about everything according to the Muffin Monster website:
“The Muffin Monster has proven itself over the last four decades in the most demanding wastewater solids reduction applications including pump stations, sludge lines, receiving stations, fish processing facilities, prisons, jails and more…”
Cost for this piece of equipment, about $8,900, approved by Woodstock Selectboard this evening acting as Sewer Commissioners.
In other business, hats back on as Selectboard…
Bruce Gould, Grettie Howe, Preston Bristow, John Doton and Bob Holt (Your elected officials) awarded a construction bid to Miller Construction to prop up and fix Larry Curtis Road bridge — Bridge #11 — that was just about washed away during spring run-off and flooding. The low bid came in at about $23,000. Town Manager Phil Swanson says he considers this emergency work that has to be done. He says there’s money left over from a winter grant that could help offset the cost by about $9,000. The Selectboard was shown photos of a concrete pedestal that was barely holding up the bridge due to the river bottom having washed away underneath it. The work is supposed to be done by July 15th.
Julia Carlisle
Woodstock Early Bird 