slogging through
We have entered 2026 on another tidal wave of unprecedented events. So, here are the things that have brought me joy lately:
The giant bow above Woody’s made by owner Suzi Curtis!
Peanut butter kiss cookies baked by Annie Mears. (Friends know my entire family is allergic to peanuts so I seek out peanut butter like a hound when I leave my house)
Peter and Wendy at Northern Stage. Abby and I went as guests of her friend’s family and had the best time.
Two hometown book announcements:
Town wide reappraisal
The town wide reaappraisal is underway. The assessors and reappraisal consultants have started in the Village. You can expect to receive the above notice in the mail prompting you to make an appointment for a reappraisal. The time will vary by the size of the property, but it is in your best interest to let them inside your home so they can examine the interior and accurately estimate the value. This will save you and the assessors time so that they have the best information possible and avoid the grievance process later.
The reappraisal consultants and assessors are driving cars which readily identify them.
WWTP
The Main Wastewater Treatment Plant is going to bond this Town Meeting Day and we are currently working on the allocation for paying the bond. The bond payment will add about ~1.6m to the sewer budget each year (the current budget is $1.5m) Options thrown out at the last meeting were:
90/10 split between users and all parcels (effectively 95/5 between users and non-users)
allocation from the infrastructure fund (local options tax #2) and users only
At our public forums, I’ve heard a reflection of the sentiments of the above options from private septic users: that non-users should pay nothing or they should pay something, but very, very little. Let me know if you have thoughts, we are hopefully setting the allocation on Monday’s meeting so that it can be included in the warning for Town Meeting.
The board will be hosting public forums every Wednesday until Town Meeting (schedule here). Please join us if you have questions about this or other ballot-related questions. Here is the website with all the info about the plant upgrades and renovations.
Budget
We are close to finalizing the budget. Items of note:
adding 2.5 firefighter/EMTs to the Fire Department (including a full time training specialist)
buying down the tax rate by ~0.5% with funds from the undesignated fund balance
adding to our sand and salt budgets, as well as road stabilization (If you recall last year, I said we can expect these line items to keep growing as we experience more extreme climate related events)
Reading/watching:
