From maintaining sidewalks to painting and preserving historic houses, the public works department in most towns is a hard-working crew.
Last year, the town of Melbourne Beach chose to eliminate the position of Public Works Supervisor, but stormwater projects, maintenance issues and numerous projects led the commission to bring it back – and former vice mayor Tom Davis took on the task.
“When I saw they had reinstated the position, I knew there was so much I could get done in town,” Davis said.
The word “works” is pivotal in the title. As public works supervisor, Davis and his staff of three employees are responsible for much of the repair and upkeep in town, with Davis soliciting bids for projects he is not able to work on.
His first major undertaking was rebuilding and renovating the Ryckman Park pavilion.
“I saw there was a request from a contractor to redo it for $25,000,” Davis said. “I worked about six weeks, one day a week with my crew, and we refurbished it.” Their cost: just under $7,000.
His team also repaired rotted posts near the park’s bathroom, landscaped the area in front of town hall and installed a new bike rack.
His next focus is the Ryckman Park playground, a major project.
With so much work to do, luckily for Davis, the town has many volunteers willing to lend a hand, like the owner of Melbourne Beach Exxon, who recently offered to donate new outdoor holiday decorations.
But scheduling volunteers and organizing donations is a full-time job in itself. So, after coordinating with Davis, longtime resident Bruce Black stepped up to volunteer as the new volunteer coordinator.
“My vision, even as a commissioner, was that we need a volunteer coordinator because there has never been a point of collection for good volunteer data,” Davis said. “It saves the town money and my staff is freed up to work on other projects.”
Black has lived in Melbourne Beach for 17 years.
“There are a lot of projects that our public works employees often don’t have time to perform and recognizing that, longtime resident Bruce Black decided he’d pitch in,” said Melbourne Beach Town Clerk Nancy Wilson.
Black and his wife Billie have two children and two grandchildren. “We are such a small town with limited resources, there is always more to do than our small staff has time to undertake,” Black said. “I spoke with Tom Davis and asked if I could volunteer to help coordinate volunteers to assist with some ongoing needs throughout the town. He welcomed my offer to help, and a few days later I was told thank you and let’s get started.”
Residents who want to take part provide Black with an email address and, when a need arises, he reaches out to all the volunteers with the project, the time, the place and what to bring.
“Down the road we have plantings to undertake, weeds to pull and much more,” Black said. “I would also like to start a program the recognizes yards that promote good landscaping practices.”
And he hopes to incorporate a few fun things as well, like a best decorated house contest for the holidays.
“We have many residents than want to help and volunteer,” Black said. “We need somebody to corral that enthusiasm. That person is me.”
