Article 6: Authorize Borrowing for Town Hall HVAC and Emergency Power Replacement Project (two-thirds majority vote).
Replacement of the Town Hall heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) had provided one of the more dramatic discussions — and multiple votes — at last year’s (2025) Town Meeting, where it appeared as one of six Capital Equipment and Projects items. It narrowly failed on a first vote and failed again on a Motion to Reconsider. The proposal returned as Article 6 at the May 4, 2026 Town Meeting, requesting authorization to borrow $2.75 million and to appropriate $80,711 of earlier unexpended funds toward the project.
Select Board clerk David Martin reviewed the current state of the Town Hall, which dates to 1863 and has been renovated several times since. He outlined multiple problems with the building, including mold and inadequate heating, cooling, and control systems. He also explained the reasoning behind the fossil-fuel-free energy choices for the project, including a $1 million state grant contingent on electrification, and he presented plans for temporary relocation of town staff during construction.
The Finance Committee recommended the Article as a “… prudent and necessary upgrade…” Residents’ comments focused on funding details and the projected cost of electricity; which was addressed with predictions of lower costs for electrical power vs. natural gas. The article passed with more than 90% approval, 379 to 36.
Article 7: Authorize Borrowing for Design of Renovating the Existing Public Works Facility and a New Public Works Facility at 14 Forest Road.
Article 7, the Department of Public Works (DPW) building design proposal, like Article 6, follows a 2025 electoral failure, in this case a defeat of Question 1 at the 2025 Town Election. Following that result, the 2025 Town Meeting approved the expenditure of $150,000 from free cash to investigate alternatives to the original proposal. After months of work by the DPW Building Committee, the summary plan that appears in the 2026 Town Meeting warrant was developed.
Select Board Chair Dean Charter reviewed the now-familiar inadequacies of the current DPW building, then described the proposal for a new administrative and maintenance building, with the existing structure to be retained for vehicle storage. At present, the estimated cost for that new building is just under $23 million, about $10 million less than the 2025 proposal. Article 7 requests $900,000 for “… development of detailed plans and construction cost estimates for consideration at a future Town Meeting.”
Finance Committee Chair Scott Sullivan noted the extensive communications over the past year, including a joint Finance Committee-Select Board meeting as the plan developed, before announcing the FinCom support for Article 7. The article passed with nearly 90% approval, 365 to 41.
Tom Beals is the Acton Exchange Select Board reporter, and in that role has followed many discussions about Town Hall HVAC and the DPW facility.
