Opening remarks: The first hour-plus of the April 28, 2025 Select Board meeting was a reprise of earlier presentations regarding the proposed replacement of the Department of Public Works (DPW) building, which is Question 1 on the April 29 Town Election Ballot.
Outgoing Select Board Chair (continuing to be Member) Fran Arsenault lauded Acton’s town staff for their service, citing numerous examples, from community ceremonies to rapid response to emergencies.
Board Member Alissa Nicol called attention to an outdoor water use restriction (one day per week) with further details from the Acton Water District, and noted the signing of a memorandum of agreement with other communities (including Bedford, with anticipated agreements from nearby towns) to study potential connection to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) for water supply from Quabbin, Wachusett, and Ware River reservoirs (see also background information from the Acton Exchange and from the Bedford Citizen).
Ms. Nicol also noted that on April 17 the Health Insurance Trust approved an $800,000 return, with the town receiving $180,400 (22.55% share), and that the district is creating a health insurance stabilization fund to manage fluctuations in employee health insurance enrollment.
Mr. Snyder-Grant noted the ongoing perambulation effort and again welcomed public participation, and mentioned a May 17 bicycling event (perhaps related to the Concord Museum’s First Annual Paul Revere’s Bike Ride).
3 and 13 School Street Development Proposal: The Exchange recently reported on a Request For Proposals (RFP) for development of 3 and 13 School Street, describing 3 School Street as “… a fire station until 1961, civil defense building, and arborist headquarters.”. Town Manager John Mangiaratti said “ultimately we only received one proposal that was responsive to the requirements of the RFP”; that proposal was submitted by Mr. Alex Mota of Somma Builders Inc. Mr. Mota, who owns and has renovated 25-27 School Street, proposes to renovate 3 School Street for use as a retail space while maintaining its historic exterior, and to construct new condominium housing at 13 School Street, currently a parking lot.
Mr. Mota’s proposal was enthusiastically received by the Board. Questions to Mr. Mota included the building’s placement on the property as shown in the proposal, and accessibility for persons with disabilities. Mr. Mota noted that the building design in his proposal was very preliminary and that discussions with the Historic District Commission and other Town groups would be ongoing. The Board unanimously authorized Mr. Mangiaratti to proceed with further negotiations on the proposal.
457 Mass. Ave., Request for Sewer Connection: The Acton Select Board has a dual role as Acton’s Sewer Commissioners. The national daycare chain Primrose Schools hopes to develop a daycare center at 457 Massachusetts Avenue, adjacent to the RJ Grey Junior High School and across Mass. Ave. from Prospect St. The project involves site plan review, a sewer connection request, and addressing a demolition delay for an existing historic house. The application to the Sewer Commissioners is for six additional Sewage Betterment Units (SBUs) to supplement the one SBU allocated for the existing single-family home; the privilege fee, a cost for sewer connection rights, for six SBUs was estimated at $30,000 per unit, pending confirmation.
The applicant showed additional material not made available in the meeting materials, including a design layout that includes demolition of the existing house. Several Board members remarked on the iconic and historic characteristics of that house and hoped that it could be preserved; a Historic District Commission review was said to be upcoming. Acton was described as a “daycare desert” with high demand for local daycare, but a call-in participant raised the issue of the impact of a large facility on smaller local providers, with a suggestion to notify them via the Economic Development Committee. The Board unanimously approved a motion empowering Mr. Mangiaratti to proceed with further negotiations.
Further Fossil Fuel Free Waiver Discussion: The April 7 Select Board meeting recognized the need for clearer criteria for issuing waivers from Acton’s Fossil Fuel Free bylaw. In response, Mr. Snyder-Grant presented proposed waiver conditions and a draft waiver application form.
The Board reviewed both documents and voted to approve the waiver form in principle, understanding that revisions are likely. While acknowledging the utility of the draft waiver-conditions document, the Board’s discussion followed along similar lines as that of the April 7th meeting, asking how specific cases might be handled. The Board agreed that preliminary guidelines will be refined based on feedback; the process will proceed with Select Board review of initial waivers to identify common themes before the guidelines are updated.
Briefly noted:
An offhand comment made as the Board began a review of a document showing a recommended and alternate paint color combinations for 17 Woodbury Lane: “This will take an hour …” Three minutes later, the Board unanimously approved the recommended color scheme.
Discovery Museum easement: An easement is a limited legal right to use property belonging to someone else. The Discovery Museum granted an easement for public access to Great Hill, and at the present meeting the Board discussed some specific terms of that easement, agreeing to continue those discussions with the Town Counsel.