Abutters Request Changes to DPW Facility Site Proposal

River Road access and the location of the facility on the site were up for discussion.

River Road residents Paul Doerr and Bill Davlin met with Wayland’s Board of Public Works Monday night to discuss the new Department of Public Works facility proposed near the town’s current salt shed and abutting Doerr’s and Davlin’s properties. At the upcoming April Town Meeting, Wayland voters will have the chance to vote on an article designating a town-owned parcel of land near the current salt shed as the site for a new DPW facility. The current design proposal calls for a 43,000-square-foot building to be constructed on the site with access through the Wayland Transfer Station road as well as River Road. The homeowners Monday night, representing a larger group of neighbors to the site, asked the Board of Public Works to encourage the…

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Electronic Voting, Other Issues Raised During Town Meeting 'Debriefing'

Residents turned out to talk about what worked and what didn't -- from electronic voting to uncomfortable chairs -- at Wayland's recent town meeting.

Wayland’s annual town meeting may be over, but that doesn’t mean people are finished talking about it. After all, this was a historic town meeting in that it was the first to feature electronic voting, and any time there is that kind of change, there are always opinions in abundance. Representatives from the Town Meeting Advisory Committee, the Town Meeting Procedures Subcommittee, the Town Meeting Facilities Subcommittee and the Electronic Voting and Implementation Subcommittee (ELVIS) invited the public to express its thoughts and opinions about all aspects of town meeting, particularly electronic voting, during a Thursday night forum. “This is an open forum. We’re here to listen,” said Dennis Berry, chair of the Town Meeting Advisory …

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Town Meeting Day 3: Voters Keep Wastewater Management Separate, Vote Down Sale of Town-Owned Land

Wayland's annual town meeting concludes on its third day.

It took nearly 12 hours over the course of three days, but Wayland’s annual town meeting has now drawn to a close with all 25 articles in the 2011 Annual Town Meeting Warrant having been disposed of. In truth, it took about eight hours to get through Articles 1-7 and only four-and-a-half hours to dispose of Articles 8 through 25. (See Day 1 coverage and Day 2 coverage). Day 3, Monday night back at Wayland Middle School, was characterized by a moderator on a mission. Early in the evening, moderator Peter Gossels joked, “double time, double time,” as voters made their way to mics to speak. “We’re going to make up the time,” Gossells told the crowd, going on to say that his goal was to wrap up town meeting that night. It would require a …

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Town Meeting Day 2: Wayland's FY12 Capital Budget Passes with Changes

Voters pass capital budget of $4 million, down from the $4.7 million proposed in the original Warrant article.

About four-and-a-half hours into Sunday afternoon’s meeting, Wayland voters approved a $4 million capital budget for FY 2012, down from the $4.7 million originally proposed in Warrant Article 6. Soon thereafter, voters moved to adjourn Day 2 of Wayland’s annual town meeting, so Day 3 will commence at Wayland Middle School Monday night at 7:30 p.m. Revisiting the Operating Budget The business of Day 2 actually began with a reopening of the operating budget portion of Article 6, which was approved in a 223 to 82 vote on Thursday evening. Finance Committee Chair Cherry Karlson, however, reopened the operating budget in order to made a change related to the revolving funds. On Thursday evening, Wayland resident Donna Bouchard pointed out that …

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Town Meeting Day 1: Voters Pass Operating Budget After Amendments to Revolving Fund Expenditures

Wayland voters pass $70.9 million operating budget.

Wayland’s annual town meeting opened Thursday night at 7:30 and adjourned shortly before 11 and just moments after a 223 to 82 vote approving a FY12 operating budget of $70.9 million. The approval came after a lengthy debate during which it was revealed that the amounts proposed to be expended from revolving funds in a Warrant Article 6 motion were illegal under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 44, Section 53E1/2. According to the law, “… no board, department or officer shall be authorized to expend in any one fiscal year from all revolving funds under its direct control more than one percent of the amount raised by taxation by the city or town in the most recent fiscal year.” Resident Donna Bouchard pointed out that the $750,000 Transfer…

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What's Happening

Five Things You Need to Know Today: April 7

Town meeting begins tonight.

1. Town meeting kicks off tonight at Wayland Middle School. The meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. in the gymnasium. Here's our cheat sheet with info you need to know related to town meeting. 2. Before heading to town meeting, perhaps you'd like to stop by Wayland High School and cheer on the girls' lacrosse teams. Both the junior varsity and varsity teams are in action against Arlington High School. 3. You have another opportunity this week to let your preschooler explore dance classes for free. Head to the Performing Arts Connection in Sudbury to take part. 4. Paul Ashley performs this afternoon at EPOCH Senior Healthcare of Weston. The performance begins at 1:45 p.m. 5. Today is World Health Day, an annual day during which the World Health …