Purpose

General Purpose

The Permanent Public Building Committee (PPBC) was formed in June 1996 with seven members who were appointed to be responsible for overseeing the construction, reconstruction, enlargement, or alteration of all buildings owned by the town or constructed on land owned, leased or operated by the town having a total project cost of $500,000 or more.

The PPBC is responsible for working with the individual user agencies as the need for a project, and / or a feasibility study, becomes established.

Building Design & Construction Department

At the Special Town Meeting in November 1997, a new position was created entitled "building construction and renovation manager". This position was created at the PPBC's request to handle the ever increasing workload that the PPBC had encountered since its creation due to the ongoing construction and renovation of town buildings.  

In 1998 the Town hired a Building Construction and Renovation Manager to work on the projects. In 2006 this position was restructured under the Public Facilities Department umbrella -Construction Division as the Director of Design and Construction. The department was renamed the Building Design and Construction Department (BD&CD) at the May 2018 Annual Town Meeting. The former Public Facilities Operations Department was renamed the Building Maintenance Division within the DPW.  

The Building Design and Construction Department provides support for the Permanent Public Building Committee (PPBC) and helps advise and support the Town Manager on Town Facility planning, design, and construction projects.  The BD&CD currently has four staff members: the Director, two Senior Project Managers and one Administrative Specialist.  State Laws now require all Towns and awarding authorities to appoint an Owners Project Manager (OPM) for all construction projects worth over $1.5 million. The staff in this Department currently fulfills the requirement for OPMs on Town building projects.