WESTBOROUGH – October’s not that far away.
Fall Town Meeting is planned for Monday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m. in the Westborough High School auditorium.
As of Sept. 1, there were 17 articles in the warrant.
The largest request is for $1 million for the design, construction and installation of rooftop cooling units for Westborough High School’s two gymnasiums. According to the warrant article, “ARPA [American Rescue Plan Act] funds have been allocated to replace the existing rooftop units that cool the entire school, but those units cannot carry the expansion of capacity with the gyms. This project is now being split into two bids due to the magnitude of work. This article would provide the additional funds to complete the full project not covered by ARPA.”
The motion for this article requires a two-thirds vote.
There are three articles associated with the Westborough Affording Housing Trust (WAHT). As part of a court settlement related to affordable housing, the town received $950,000. Town Meeting will decide whether to transfer these funds to the WAHT.
The other two articles pertain to the Housing Partnership Committee. Both articles request that the WAHT become the appointing authority for the committee, either as a committee or a subcommittee. According to the article, “The Westborough Affordable Housing Trust is empowered to perform tasks and provide services that are also within the scope of the Housing Partnership Committee. The town has struggled to appoint members to the Housing Partnership Committee, impacting the ability of the committee to fulfill its responsibilities.”
Other articles include requests from the Fire Department to hire three firefighters; an adjustment to the Finance Department budget; an appropriation to increase the Westborough TV budget; and an appropriation to purchase more public safety radios.
There’s also an article requesting to accept Quick Farm Road.
The warrant will close on Tuesday, Sept. 26.
Read the entire warrant at https://www.westboroughma.gov/town-meetings/pages/town-meeting-warrants.