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Devens Electric System

Littleton Electric to Operate and Maintain Devens Electric System

The Littleton Electric Light and Water Departments has signed an eight-year contract to maintain and operate the electrical system at Devens, a 4,400-acre mixed-use community with about 850 electrical meters.

The LELWD won the competitive bid conducted by MassDevelopment, the state’s development finance agency and land bank. MassDevelopment will pay the LELWD about $1 million annually to operate and maintain the system, plus provide additional funding for capital improvements. MassDevelopment will continue to manage customer service and billing.

“The LELWD is pleased to bring our award-winning service and reliability to the Devens community. This will benefit the Devens residents and businesses who can rely on the LELWD to maintain the system and work to prevent outages. This is also a win for the LELWD as we create a new revenue source and new opportunities for the professional development of our line crews and engineers,” said Nick Lawler, P.E., General Manager of the LELWD.

The LELWD assumed operations and maintenance on July 1, 2025. The additional revenue and service territory will allow the LELWD to strengthen its team of line crews and not impact rates or service for its existing customers.

The Wellesley Municipal Light Plant elected not to bid for the contract. Wellesley had served Devens since the early 2000s after assuming the role from the LELWD.

The municipal electric provider for Littleton and Boxborough, the LELWD has a reputation for reliable service and fast restoration of its infrequent outages. The LELWD has been recognized for eight consecutive years for excellence in reliability by the American Public Power Association. In 2024, the LELWD customers were without power for a total of 30 minutes, compared to national average of 149 minutes, according to the APPA data.

MassDevelopment is redeveloping the former military base into a community with 100 businesses and organizations employing about 10,000 workers and with about 1,900 residents.

July 7th, 2025

Taylor Street’s New Water Main

Taylor Street Water Main

Taylor Street is getting a new water main to replace a 113-year-old main that has become constricted, which is like drinking out of a smaller straw.

Construction Area

Taylor Street between Whitcomb Avenue and Porter Road.

Scope of Work

Digging up and removing the 6-inch, cast-iron water main and replacing it with 8-inch ductile iron pipe. Connecting customers to a temporary water main during construction and then to the finished water main. Repaving of the road at end of the project. 

Detours

Expect daytime detours between 7 a.m., and 4 p.m. Detour is planned onto Porter Road and Whitcomb Avenue. 

Service Interuptions

Customers on the route can expect brief service interruptions when service lines are swapped over to the temporary and new water mains.

Timeline

The project kicks-off June 27 with the installation of a temporary water main. Digging in the roadway and detours will begin in early July. The work to remove and install the water main could take up to 40 days, but may be done sooner. The road will be repaved as soon as possible after the completion of work, as allowed by the road opening permit.

Water Main Installed in 1912

The cast-iron water main installed in 1912 was state-of-the-art for the time. Original water mains were made of wood and assembled like barrels. 

What else happened in 1912?

Scam Alert

Customer Scam Alert! Click here for details

Please be aware of e-mail and telephone scams!

Here is what you should know:

If called about an instant payment or service disconnection, immediately hang up and call LELWD to verify your account status at 978-540-2222, Mon.-Thurs., 6:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

LELWD will never seek immediate payment over e-mail or the phone using a prepaid debit card or money order.

LELWD does not contract with any other utility on service shut offs or payment requests.

Please contact us if you have any questions

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Enroll for community notifications to recieve important electric and water updates to the community! 

LELWD Forum

LELWD FORUMS

Water Public Forum

January 15th @ 7p.m.

Thank you for joining us in a webinar presenting details of the Boxborough water main extension project.

To learn more, visit the Boxborough Water Main page.

Boxborough Water Main Page

Enroll for community notifications to recieve important electric and water updates to the community! 

Customer Scam Alert! Click here for details

Please be aware of telephone scams.  LELWD will never seek immediate payment over the phone using a prepaid debit card or money order. LELWD does not contract with Eversource or another utility on service shut offs. If called about an instant payment or service disconnection, immediately hang up and call LELWD to verify your account status at 978-540-2222, Mon.-Thurs., 6:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Water Service Line Inventory Project

Water Service Line Inventory Project

LELWD is conducting a survey of water service lines to check for the presence of lead. We are unaware of any lead service lines attached to the water system, but we are required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to create an inventory of all the system’s service materials to rule out the possibility.

LELWD will conduct an electronic survey, asking customers to upload information and photos of their service lines, and complete several field inspections.

Steps to Locate & Identify Your Water Service Line

Follow the steps in this guide provided courtesy of Tighe & Bond engineering firm.

Learn More from MassDEP FAQ on Lead in Drinking Water
Guide To Identify Your Water Service Line
MassDEP Lead in Drinking Water FAQ
Complete the Customer Survey

You can help us by completing the quick online survey and uploading photos of your water service line. Click here to get started.

LELWD Committed to Safe & Reliable Drinking Water

LELWD is committed to providing its customers with a safe and reliable source of drinking water. We regularly conduct sampling for lead in accordance with state and federal requirements, and pass drinking water tests for a large number of regulated contaminants, including lead. Information regarding lead in drinking water is provided in the Water Department’s Annual Water Quality Report.

Regulatory Background

In 2021, the US EPA published revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule that are intended to better protect children and communities from lead exposure risks and support efforts to remove lead from drinking water. The revisions require all Public Water Systems to complete an inventory of all service lines connected to their distribution system and develop a Lead Service Line Replacement Plan.

The inventory must include the pipe material and other information for both the system-owned and customer-owned portions of the service line between the water main and a structure. The Inventory and Replacement Plan must be submitted by October 16, 2024.

Survey Funded by State Drinking Water Grant

  • In working toward a lead-free water distribution system for its customers, the Littleton Water Department applied for and received $174,000 in Financial Assistance under the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) to complete the water service line inventory and lead service line replacement plan. Activities planned for the project include:
  • Reviewing existing records that may contain information on the material of each service line.
  • Distributing a survey with instructions for customers to provide information or photos of their service line to help identify the pipe material.
  • Conducting service line inspections where a contractor will inspect the service line as it enters a customer’s building in person.
  • Providing public education and notification materials to customers and the community regarding lead and development of the inventory and replacement plan.

If you would like to help the Littleton Water Department develop their water service line inventory, please review the information provided on this website with instructions to locate your service line, how to determine the material type of your service line, and then complete this customer survey. Any questions can be addressed to Matt Silverman, Water & Sewer Superintendent, at [email protected] or 978-540-2260.

Planned Water Service Disruptions

Planned Water Service Disruptions

Expect Water Service Disruptions Sept.-Nov. 2024

While installing the new sewer mains, crews have also been installing new water mains while the road is already trenched. It is now the time in the project to swap water customers’ service lines from the old water main to the new water main.

This will require a brief, overnight disruption of water service for each water customer within the sewer district on Great Road and King Street. This work is scheduled for September 23 through November 30 and possibly later until work ceases for the winter, but is subject to change at the contractor’s discretion and due to weather. This schedule has been updated from the original completion estimate of November 15.

What To Expect

  • LELWD is working with the contractor, Revoli Construction, to inform customers of when to expect a brief service interruption. Due to many factors, advanced notice may not be possible. However, the timing and speed of the brief shutoff should minimize the impact to residents and businesses. The work will be done overnight and the swap of a service line from one main to another takes about 10 minutes.
  • Overnight work at the curbside will cause noise.

What To Do

  • Set aside water now for use during the brief disruption.
  • When service is restored, run the cold tap for 5 minutes to clear any discolored water.
  • If you have questions or concerns, please call Tyler O’Brien, Water and Sewer Operations Coordinator at 978-540-2286.
  •  

Schedule

The schedule is subject to change without advance notice. Work is scheduled as follows:

  • Great Road

    Scheduled start: September 23

    Scheduled finish: November 30 and possibly later until work ceases for the winter

  • King Street

    Scheduled start: November 6

    Scheduled finish: November 30 and possibly later until work ceases for the winter

Sewer Project

Notifications

New Notification System

We are moving to a new community notifcation system. Please share your contact information with LELWD to make sure you receive important information about the services we provide you. It’s easy, just fill out the form below! Even if you’ve signed up for emergency notification in the past, please do so again to confirm we have your correct contact information.

These customer alerts are only sent as needed and are separate from the community notifications used by the Towns of Littleton and Boxborough. The estimated frequency for these alerts are less than 1 per month.

Types of Notifications:

  • Emergency alerts for your neighborhood: Sent only to impacted neighborhoods. Electric, water or sewer service maintenance, repairs, construction, or other work that may impact your neighborhood including service outages and traffic detours. 
  • General information: Receive general information about LELWD services, invitations to LELWD-sponsored public events, and the LEWLD customer newsletter.
  • Public Events: Receive invitations to LELWD-sponsored events such as forums providing information and an opportunity for public feedback on projects and services.