Finance Committee - Regular Meeting

and I respectfully ask that you refer to me as madam moderator. We have a very packed warrant tonight and we did plan for overflow. I'm going to test the audio and visual in the commons. Kenley Fletcher, can you please check in with me and verify that they can hear us in the commons area and the screen is working. Thank you, Kenley. A few reminders of the rules of order. To accommodate the higher attendance, we have set up chairs in the commons. I do ask that anyone with mobility issues please stay seated in the auditorium as that is where we will have pages available with wireless microphones. If you would like to speak on an article, please proceed to the auditorium. Get in line at the nearest microphone and wait to be called on by the moderator. For those with mobility issues, we do have wireless microphones available. Raise your hand and call for a point of privilege and the wireless microphone will be brought to you by a member of the Grafton High School National Honor Society. I'd like to take a moment to thank tonight's volunteers, Andrew Ares, Liam Tinddale, Kenley Fletcher, Kayn Banks, and Olivia Blanchard. [applause] Please remember to state your full name and address each time that you speak and speak closely into the microphone so everyone can hear you. Remember that all questions must be directed to the moderator. Visitors associated with boards or committees may sit with those boards or committees if they have cleared it with me before the start of the meeting. No food or drink is allowed in the auditorium during the meeting except for what the bread guy brought up to the stage.

Shouting or outburst will not be tolerated at any time. At our annual meeting in the fall of 2025, the Massachusetts Moderators Association was presented with a governor's citation for our Spark of Revolution initiative commemorating the American Revolution. Our two-year effort encourages town moderators to share a statement at the annual town meeting to recognize the upcoming semiquincentennial and our town's contribution. Imagine a room in 1735, 40 years before the American Revolution, where Grafton residents gathered to vote on the very first needs of a new community. Fast forward through 291 years and over 600 meetings, and that core mission has not changed. We are the curators of one of the oldest functioning forms of direct democracy in the world. In Grafton, the power isn't held in a distant capital or behind closed doors. It lives in this meeting twice a year. This centuries old masterpiece is still our most effective tool for shaping the town that we see when we walk out of our front door. To understand why this tradition matters, we have to look back to 1774. Two years before the United States was even a country, the citizens of Grafton gathered for a town meeting that would chase change the course of their history. In a unanimous vote, the people of this town stood together to support the Worcester committees of correspondents and their resolution against the intolerable acts. They didn't wait for a representative to tell them how to feel. They used this very forum to declare that their rights were not negotiable. That same spirit, the idea

that a group of neighbors in a room has the say on the laws that govern them is the exact same power that you hold when you pick up an electronic voting remote control in Grafton today. It is a direct line from the birth of American Liberty to the warrant articles we face this year. The residents in Grafton who gathered in 1774 to defy the intolerable acts didn't just vote for their own interests. They voted for a future where their neighbors, us, would always have a seat at the table. Today, that table is a comfortable chair in this high school. It might not feel as cinematic as a revolution, but the stakes are just as real. When we stay home, we aren't just skipping a meeting. We are outsourcing our voice to whoever happens to show up. Tonight, when you are in this room, you aren't just an observer. You are a legislator. You are the direct successor to those 18th century citizens who understood that democracy is not a spectator sport. It is a living, breathing responsibility. So, I thank you all for being here tonight. Thank you for bringing that same resolve that has divine defined Grafton for nearly three centuries. Let's make sure that the last true democracy doesn't just survive in the history books, but it thrives in our own backyard. From 1735 to 2026, town meeting has worked best when the room reflects the community. Your voice matters. Your vote matters. Welcome to Springtown Meeting. [applause] I hope you all enjoyed the welcome music from our pep band during check-in. I have been wanting to have them join our town meeting for quite a few years, and this year I finally got all my ducks in

a row. Please stand and welcome the Grafton High School pep band as they perform the national anthem.

[applause]

Thank you all so much for coming and to welcome the Grafton High School. I'm sorry, I lost my place. Thank you all so much for coming tonight and sharing your talent with town meeting. And thank you, Mr. Trombley, for responding to my request with a resounding we will make the space work and fit where we can. Last year, I partnered with the Grafton Middle School and asked students to submit designs for a poster promoting Grafton Town Meeting. You may have seen this poster in the municipal center and throughout the town and on social media, spreading the word for tonight's meeting and I hope building an interest in our local government. I would like to invite the winner of this year's contest, Kayla Kim, to the stage to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. [applause]

[snorts]

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Thank you, Miss Kim. And in recognition of your outstanding civic engagement, creativity, and winning design for the 2026 spring town meeting poster contest, I present you with the certificate of award. [applause] [applause]

For those of you who may not have seen it, in the spring of 2023 at the annual town meeting, the select board presented a land acknowledgement to be read at every annual spring town meeting, which I am honored to share tonight. We acknowledge that the land the town of Grafton is located on is the traditional and unseated territory of the Hassana Messco Nipmok people who continue to reside on the land today. This acknowledgement is read at the annual town meeting to remember that in 1654 the colonial legislature established the third praying Indian village of Hassa Nameset which is today known as Grafton. We denounce the violence of colonialism which stripped these original stewards of lands that were their ancestral home. We seek to better educate ourselves and honor these lands. We recognize and honor the Nipmuk who were displaced and celebrate those who returned and remained today. Let this acknowledgement serve as a reminder for all people when they are enjoying the land, wildlife, and natural beauty of Grafton, of our commitment to being good stewards of the land and supporting the rights and interests of indigenous people. In February of this year, the select board launched an initiative to recognize a Grafton resident who, through their personal involvement, leadership skills, and selfless giving of their time and talent has positively affected the town of Grafton and its residents. This first year of the award, the selection committee comprised of representatives from the select board, school committee, the town clerk, and town administrator had the privilege of reviewing many remarkable nominations. However, one individual stood out for a lifetime of service that has quite literally rewritten our town's history.

Most of us know the feeling of wanting to be remembered, but this year's recipient has spent the last 28 years making sure that others are remembered first. A Worcester native who got adopted by Grafton in the 1970s, Andy Shelberg brought home the lessons of a deployment in Vietnam and turned them into a mission of remembrance and a profound local significance. For nearly three decades, he has examined records in overgrown cemetery plots to preserve the service histories of many individuals whose contributions might otherwise have gone unrecognized. He grew a list of 900 names into a database of over 2,000 veterans, ensuring that every person buried in Grafton who wore a uniform is accounted for. Because of him, we have a second bronze plaque at the town hall honoring 208 additional Vietnam veterans. Now, for his unwavering commitment to our veterans, his tireless research, and his selfless service to Grafton, it is my distinct honor to invite the 2026 Outstanding Citizen Award recipient to the stage, Andy Shelbark. [applause]

[applause] [applause] [applause] [applause] [applause]

There are seats in the commons area for overflow and there are still empty seats down here in the auditorium. Chief Matthew would never forgive me if I didn't encourage you all to find a seat and please not stand in the aisles. That is a fire hazard. See, he's he already beat me to it. He's he's moving you along. Come on, push together like you're taking a group photo. That goes for the people on this side of the room, too. I am thrilled that there are so many people here tonight, don't get me wrong. Please welcome the vice chair of the Veterans Advisory Committee, Bob Dtoma, to the stage for a special presentation. [applause] [applause] Congratulations, Andy. Good evening, everyone. I'm Bob Dtoma. I'm the chairman of the Veterans Advisory Committee for the Town of Grafton. This evening, the Veterans Advisory Committee is dedicating a plaque to honor the memory of longtime Grafton resident Jim Gallagher.

In the audience tonight are his children, Aaron and Kevin. Would you stand, please? [applause] Welcome to you both. Jim, for those of you who didn't know him, was a longtime resident of Grafton. He truly loved everything about Grafton. He was a member of the Veterans Advisory Committee and an Army veteran, having served during the Vietnam War. Jim's contribution to the conflict was finance. He often repeated the phrase, "Ours is not to do or die. We add, subtract, and multiply." Which reminds me of a story that Jim often told us about making deliveries of payroll from Okinawa to South Vietnam. He said we would fly in on a C130, land abruptly on the runway, open the rear ramp, and start throwing cases of money out to the pay masters on the runway. All while the bullets and the mortar rounds were impacting the runway. And then the pilots took off as quickly as they could while I sat in the back and concentrated on not peeing my pants. Jim's contributions to the town that he loved included hosting Grafton Update on Grafton Community Television. He even interviewed Ralph Nater. And for those of you who don't know who he is, you can look him up. He even interviewed I'm sorry he coached little league, served on the housing authority, served on the cable oversight committee and the veterans advisory

committee. Of course, he was always active at town meetings. When he spoke, he was passionate and articulate, and I will always remember how he would yell out, "Hi, Ray." He would make countless donations to charity. He was a parishioner of St. Mary's Church, played Santa every Christmas, was a strong supporter of everything in town. He put everyone's needs before his own, a devoted father and husband, and he always had a joke to share. The plaque, which is outside, as you exit this evening on the uh column reads, dedicated to the memory of Jim Gallagher. [clears throat] The plaque reads, "Dedicated to the memory of Jim Gallagher, a longtime resident of Grafton, serving many boards and committees, a coach to several little league teams in town, an active mar member of St. Mary's Church." Jim's favorite words were, "All that is not given is lost." Thank you. [applause] Someone just came in and said that they were unable to hear. I want to do another audio check.

Okay. And I just had a request from the chief. If there are empty seats near you, please push together and free up the empty seats so that they are more than onesies or twzies. We still have people arriving, which is amazing.

Get to know your neighbors. Okay, thank you. One of the key features of the electronic voting system we purchased is that it is scalable, which enables the town of Grafton to borrow remote controls from a surrounding town when a large turnout is anticipated. I want to thank the town of Groten for the additional clickers we have in use tonight. And I would like to do a quick test. Please press one for yes.

[snorts]

I have been informed by our town clerk that as of 7:00 we have 800 188 people in attendance. [applause] Can everyone now please press two? That is the no button. What?

You just have to press the button once and that's all you need to do. Just press No, it's not going to do anything on your end. But up here on the screen, I can see all the numbered clickers start popping up and changing from green to red. It says what? Do you have one from Grten?

Okay,

Mark. Okay. So, there are a lot of people and a lot of in one base station, so be patient. I still have clickers turning from green to red. I just got a text from Dave Robbins in the comments and he said, "My clicker is not responding." And I wrote back, "There is a delay." Oh, it finally responded. Huge delay. So, we're going to be patient tonight. Okay. Um, I also have a message from our town clerk that a license was left. Natasha Lynn Hunt, your license is at the front when you leave. Can you please make sure you grab that on your way out? My next order of business is to appoint Dave Robbins as my deputy moderator. Dave is overseeing the overflow area in the commons. And Dave is going to remind everyone that questions must be made at the microphones in the auditorium. to proceed into this room quietly and line up at the microphone when they wish to speak on an article. Okay, test is ended. Joining me on the stage tonight, we have town administrator Evan Brasad, assistant town administrator William Blake, our town attorney Chris Brown,

and our town clerk Amy Barry. Behind me is seated our finance committee, Angelina Korea, Skip Courier, Dan Kusher, Victoria Duckworth, Mark Hadad, Greg Maher, Heather McHugh, Kyle Quirk, and Samir Raman Ramen. Sorry, Samir. And to my right is our select board, Mark Alamo, Craig Doffany, Ann Marie Foley, Andy Jefferson, and Matt Otton. Tonight is the last night that Mark and Matt will be sitting with the select board on the stage, but I do hope that they will continue to attend town meetings going forward. [applause] At the end of this month, the eighth grade students from Grafton Middle School will be headed to Washington DC. They will visit major national monuments, museums, and historical sites, gaining hands-on educational experiences regarding American history and government. I invited them here tonight so they could see our local legislative branch of government in action. I am thrilled to see so many of you accepted my invitation. You should have all signed in at the desk when you picked up your bingo card and your town meeting guide. If you haven't signed in, please do so before you leave. You will get a 100 quiz grade as credit for attending tonight's meeting. [applause] Before I move on, I wanted to see if any of the students who turned 18 or before May 1st in the class of 2026, who were in our inaugural group of eighth graders to attend town meeting in 2022, took me up on my invitation to come here tonight as participants. Please stand. [applause]

[applause]

Thank you so much for taking the time to come here tonight. I truly appreciate it. Now we have update from the capital from our state representative David Meridian. [applause] Well, good evening everyone and I'm sure you're quite anxious to get going, so I promise to be somewhat brief. Um, I want to give a a brief update and I probably should address it as David Maiden, 8 North Street. Um, a brief update on the House budget that we just passed uh the last full week of April. Um, but prior to that, we did pass a supplemental budget a bit before that where I'm proud to announce uh $50,000 to help offset special education costs occurred from FY26. So, I was able to get that included in the House budget. As I'm sure many of you in the room are acutely aware, the chapter 70 number uh was 14,15,088 and UGGA, which is unrestricted general government aid is 1,961,438. So, those increases uh signal signal a $160 per pupil, which is the highest per pupil the state has ever done. And I was very proud to advocate for that. For those that don't fall with the mental math, that's over $490,000 additionally from what last budget was. That being said, that to me is not enough. So, I wanted to take just a minute of your time and highlight some of my priorities that I voted for in the last budget. Voted for increase in public aid to local libraries, increase in state aid to regional libraries to regional school

transportation to increase Head Start funding. Project 351 for technology and talent to expand access and service learning opportunities. Establish an AGA commission. Increase in district school transportation by $16 million. The budget 63 billion. I think we have enough. Improve augmentative and alternative communication for students with disabilities. 400,000 for Easter Seals Massachusetts. Create a chapter 70 local contribution formula working group. The list can honestly go on. Rate increases for early education and care. strengthening local aid by trying to move up that number. Strengthening special education circuit breaker to raise the reimbursement rate from 75% to 90%. A chapter 70 inflation adjustment. An unfunded mandate task force. A special commission on chapter 70 funding. All of those amendments were included in consolidated amendment A, which was our education amendment. Unfortunately, none of those amendments were included. I voted for it. I tried to get them included. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. So, I did vote against consolidated A. What I will say is I voted for the budget because of that $160 per pupil, which we so sorely need. I'm quickly going to rattle off a couple of roll calls that we took that I am proud to say that I either co-sponsored or sponsored along with members of the minority party. A reimbursement for average per pupil special education costs. There were 25 yeses. There were 133 nos. Increase unrestricted general government aid by 10%.

There were 25 yeses. There are 133 nos. The list again can't go on. We also had uh a reimbursement for per pupil unrestricted general government aid. Couple other things that were in there directing reversions to UG went down 28 yes votes to 130 no votes. Excess revenue from our consensus revenue number when we have our projections in the beginning of the year. If we come over it, we said it should go back to local aid. 27 yes votes, 131 no votes. And no cost call funding. We take the $10 million out of no cost call funding for inmates and put it back to unrestricted general government aid. 26 yes votes, 132 no votes. I don't say that just to highlight the fact that the minority party was not successful there, but I say it to highlight the fact that I understand what we're all going through. This is not the first time I fought for more education funding and more funding in general from the state and you have my commitment to continue doing that. Thank you all for coming and I expect to see this room packed in the fall at TAL meeting too. Thank you. [applause] Without further ado, I invite our town clerk Amy Barry to read the return of the warrant. To any of the constables in the town of Grafton in the county of Worcester, greetings. In the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you are directed to notify and warn the inhabitants of the town of Graf Grafton qualified to vote in elections and town affairs to meet in the Grafton High School auditorium located at 24 Providence Road on Monday the 11th day of May, 2026 at 7 p.m. and act on the

following articles. And you are directed to serve this warrant by posting up an attested copy thereof in some conspicuous place in the town at least 14 days before said meeting. Hereof, fail not, and make do return of this warrant with your doings thereon of the town clerk at the time and the place of the meeting as for said, given under the hands on this 21st day of April in the year of the Lord, 2026. Select Board, Town of Grafton, Andrew Jefferson, Chair, Craig Dolphin, Vice Chair, Mark Alamo, Clerk, and Marie Foley, Matthew Otton. I have complied with the requirements of the above warrant and wish with the town of Grafton bylaws by posting an attested copy of the warrant in some conspicuous place in the town on the above date. Cynthia J. Eyid, Constable of Grafton.

Thank you, Amy. We have two consent agendas on the warrant tonight. To review, a consent agenda's purpose is to act expeditiously on certain types of articles that generate little or no debate and can be addressed by a single vote. Consent agenda one pertains to articles one, two, and three and affects the current fiscal year. Having these articles in the annual town meeting warrant eliminates the need for a special town meeting. Consent agenda two pertains to articles 4 through 13 which affect the next fiscal year. A consent agenda ensures our time is available for discussion of genuine debate. Once a consent agenda motion is made, I will read each article number and a brief summary under that consent agenda one at a time. If you wish to hold an article and discuss it individually, call out hold. I will then ask for a motion on the remaining articles and from there each article that is held will be addressed in the order of appearance on the warrant consent agenda one.

Madam moderator, Mr. Jefferson, I move that the town vote to act upon articles one, two, and three and that they be passed by consent.

Motion made and seconded. If you wish to hold an article and discuss it individually, call out hold. Any held articles will be removed and we will vote on the remaining as a consent agenda. Article one, transfers and appropriates from free cash the sum of $10,000 for the fire department retirement account. Article two. Hold on. Article one. Article two, transfers and appropriates from free cash the sum of $310,05 for the OPB trust account. Article three transfers $858,000 from free cash to adjust the following line items in the following amounts. Snow and ice $290,000. Sanitation, $120,000. Health insurance, $448,000. We have a hold on article one. I need a motion for well, consent agenda one is only article three. So, I'm just going to take them in the order they appear on the warrant. Article one. Mr.

Dane,

I move the town vote to transfer and appropriate a sum of $10,000 from free cash to the fire department. I don't think you're projecting enough. Try it again. Ah, there we go.

Okay. I move the town vote to transfer and appropriate a sum of $10,000 from free cash to the fire department retirement account. Motion made and seconded. Any discussion on the motion? Rick Lane, 19th Ferry Street. I'm in favor of this article passing tonight. What I want to make sure that people realize that this is a travesty for what we do for our firefighters. Okay? $100 a year in retirement. These are town employees. Under the finance committee, it says volunteer. We do not have volunteers. They are town employees. They are call firefighters that respond at all hours of the day. We have one of the best call departments in the state. And we're working very hard to keep it that way. We're working with bringing new people in, which is getting harder and harder for them to remain in town and live in town. But retainment, we offer nothing. We offer no benefits. We offer nothing for these firefighters to stay here and keep responding. This has to change. But obviously with the money spent on everything else, it's going to be very difficult over the years to do anything for our fire department. And when it becomes a full-time fire department, we are going to be broke. Thank you. Please pass this tonight. I've just been informed by the warden that we have run out of clickers. I am going to declare a short recess. All of the clickers need to be returned and we will be switching to voice vote.

Thank you all so much for your patience. I do appreciate it. I'm calling the meeting back into session. There are some logistical challenges that we are facing. We have over 1,000 people registered for the meeting. We only have 1,000. Yes, that is very amazing. Unfortunately, we only have 1,000 electronic voting remote controls. The way the system is scalable, in order for us to elevate that to more than a thousand, we would need to have a consultant, a landline, an extra base station, and the space to put you all. Our bylaws allow that if there is any unfinished business, subsequent adjourned meeting shall be held the following Wednesday and Monday evenings consecutively at 7 p.m. until the final adjournment. Given that our bylaw requires that we have our next meeting on Wednesday, that is not enough time for us to feasibly get a consultant, get another thousand more remote controls, secondary base stations, and find a space big enough. As such, I am going to call for a motion to adjourn.

Madam moderator, Mr. Jefferson, I move that we adjourn the meeting until Wednesday, May 13th to be held at the Grafton High School at 7 p.m. Motion made and seconded. Any discussion on the motion? Please be respectful and keep in mind that we have a lot of people here. Everyone is very frustrated by this turn of events. If you have a question, you can come to the microphone.

Can you please explain what would happen then if we rejourn on Wednesday, but we don't have the time or resources to align with what you just

What will happen is we will go back. We will go back to the beginning. You will come back, check in with the town clerk. You will be given a wristband or a paddle that identifies you as a voter. We will come in, we will start the meeting. We will not go through all of the opening ceremonies. Again, we will pick right up with the consent agenda one. We will go through the warrant as we normally would. We would be using a voice vote, not the electronic voting. Hi. Can you hear me? Can you hear me? No. Speak a little bit closer. Can you hear me? Yes.

Uh, my name is Mary Smith. I I just want to say that this form of democracy seems to be celebrated in the beginning of this meeting, but for me, this is disenfranchising. [applause] I am a mother of four children. My two youngest are three and four. This is bedtime. This is for me. I feel like something we need to consider as a town that this worked in the 18th century, but this is not viable for these decisions. Thank you, [applause] madam moderator. Is there Peter Adams 100 Brigham Hill Road? Is there any possibility of getting the technology and more clickers for Wednesday night?

No, unfortunately there is not. Good evening. I'm Robert Flynn from 15 Metobrook Road. I have a question and I have a request. My question, my first question is why did we not have a police officer out there directing traffic into this meeting? Sir, that's my question. I'm sorry, but your question has to be about the motion that's on the floor. And my second my request is we need a police officer to help disseminate this crowd when we leave. I think it's unconscionable that this committee did not think of these things and inviting us here under those circumstances. [applause]

Madam moderator, Mr. Brasad,

can we just acknowledge that the town of Grafton has never had a town meeting with over 600 people before? So we thought, right, we we only have we we got a thou I hear you. We only have a thousand clickers because we only own 400 and we borrowed them from the town of Graten to make the other thousand. Um if we go beyond a thousand, you need a consultant to create a network to make all these things jive because we're going to borrow them from two other communities. That's how it works. So, what Don is talking about is that when we come back on Wednesday night, you would have the same process, but without the clickers. We would forego the clickers from the beginning because we won't be able to put that together in time.

Yes, sir. William Road. Microphone, please. Microphone, please. There are people in the commons area, so I need you to speak into the microphone.

I do. I'll blow it out. William Harris, 99 Old Westboro Road. There is an alternative plan instead of trying to wait another couple weeks because there are folks here that have kids that are in school and they can't be coming back and going forth. So, the alternative plan for that is to have a written vote, a written vote such as the old ballot style vote instead of trying to go ahead and waste money on getting clickers and such for it. [applause] We're going to adjourn to Wednesday and on Wednesday if the town votes to do that then they can have that as their method of voting. But you need to have an alternative battle plan in place for something like this. This should have been foreseen.

Thank you. Thank you [applause]

Terry Turjan 17 Nelson Street. I first of all, I just want to thank everyone who took the time out to come to tonight's town meeting and [applause] we actually have had turnouts as high as this before. We don't need clickers. You actually started this meeting with talking about the spirit of democracy and neighbors actually having a voice in what happens in their town. All of these people showed up tonight. give them the voice that they want to have. I'll I'll encourage you to do some old-fashioned math. Raise your hand and vote yes or no on article 15. [applause]

Just a point of clarification, I guess. What is the process if we vote against adjourning? Then everybody goes back outside. We reregister, make sure we have an accurate count of the total, and then we resume the meeting. I guess we have an option, right?

Donna Stock, 238 McGill Drive. I quickly did. If a town meeting in Massachusetts runs out of electronic voting clickers, what are your options? There are several. One is to do a hand vote. Another is to do a paper vote. The third one is that the people that have the clickers can vote and the people that don't are set aside in a separate section and they are counted separately. I don't know what you said our attendance was, but if we had a thousand clickers and we have 60 extra people, it would just be counting those 50 people that we would need to do.

Right. Emma Tule 145 Keith Hill Road. Um, I was just wondering if you have a plan for like absentee voting for Wednesday if it gets moved because Yeah. town meeting does not ha is an in-person legislative body. It is not like an election. You have to be here for your vote to be counted. Yeah. So, that's why I came here today. Yeah. So, please don't silence my voice because I took the time to come here. Yeah. Okay. Thanks. [applause] Is there any other discussion on the motion to adjurnn?

We have John Lincoln, 23 Patricia Drive. Uh madam. Uh so can we have a vote if we want to go out and come back in and then vote? How do we do the vote to go out and come back? I will take a voice vote on the motion to adjurnn. So you can take the voice vote now to adjourn, but you can't take the voice vote on any of the articles. Just wonder. [applause]

Is there any other discussion on the motion to adjurnn? Madam moderator, Lesley Girtton, 72 Brigham Hill Road. Can you please explain why we all have to go back out reregister when you clearly have a quorum? So I don't understand why it's necessary for us to still go outside

when we allowed people into the room tonight because we have electronic voting. We did not set aside a separate vid visitors section. So I have no way of knowing when there is a voice vote if the person who's speaking is actually a registered voter. I can take a voice vote to adjourn the meeting. Madam moderator, further can I ask, can you send the non-registered voters that are here as visitors out to the other area so that they can hear what's going on and your voters who are registered here in the town can conduct town meeting tonight as they came here to do. I ask your consideration. Thank you. [applause]

Gopal Shinoi, five chipper drive. I wanted to understand you said that we cannot have a voice word on any of the articles because you're afraid that there are unregistered voters who may vote for it. So can you help me understand how the same voters cannot vote for or against the adjournment that you're asking for? That is an excellent question. [applause] And what is the answer? The answer is I can take a voice vote for adjournment. I do not need a quorum to adjourn the meeting.

With no further discussion, all those in favor of adjourning the meeting to Wednesday, May 13th at 7 p.m. All in favor say I. I. All opposed. Okay,

everyone has to go back out and re-register. I'm getting the updated total on everyone who has come back and reregistered. I am resuming the meeting. We were in discussion on article one, transfer and appropriate from free cash the sum of $10,000 for the fire department retirement account. Is there any further discussion on the article? Hearing none, all those in favor, please say I.

I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion carried by the majority. Mr. Carlson, before we proceed, I have been told that there are 68 five 83 people and they are still dripping in. I want to remind everyone that we are all here for the same reason and please treat each other with the dignity and respect that town meeting deserves.

Mr. Carlson. Oh, your mic's not hot. Try this. Yep. Try everything. Madam moderator, Mr. Carlson,

Peter Carlson, 42 Upton Road, I would like you to entertain a motion for a procedural change in the order in tonight's articles. I move that pursuant to article 2 section 12 of the town of Grafton bylaws the meeting vote to take up articles 14 current FY27 budget articles and 15 contingency FY27 override budget article 16 capital improvement project budget and article 28 middle school middle school roof funding article and then return to the natural order of the the remaining articles.

Motion. [cheering] Motion has been made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Hearing none, all those in favor say I. I.

All those opposed Before calling for the motion on article 14, I invite town administrator Evan Brasad to make a brief presentation which will outline the three budget articles on the warrant. Article 14, the fiscical year 27 balanced operating budget. Article 15, the fisc year 27 contingency budget. and article 16, the fiscal year 27 capital budget.

Thank you, madam moderator. Um, so I will be very brief and we'll get right to the to the meat of it. Um, Amber, if you want to go to slide uh Okay. Um, Amber, can you five? volume. I know. The buttons on, man. It's on. I know how to use a mic.

Okay. How about this?

All right. No, I'm I'm good, Greg. I'm just going to use Andy's. Andy can figure out something else. Um, all right. So, quickly, if if you recall, um, I'm going to go over just some some cost savings and revenue initiatives that we've done in the past year, um, including grants. So, so far in fiscal 26, we've received about $ 1.5 million in grants. It's about half of what we received last year. Um, and I think that opportunities have shifted. So, I anticipate that that number will probably stay below $2 million by the end of the fiscal year. Um, we also created the solid waste enterprise fund. So, if you followed along with that process, um, which shifted $600,000 out of the general fund budget. Next slide, Amber. Thank you. So, this is article 14. This is the operating budget for fiscal 27. Um, this is a balanced budget. So, this is the budget that contains any reductions or changes that we needed to make uh in order to get this um budget to balance. Um so, you'll see general government is up by about 936,000. I'm going to go over why that is in just a second. Public safety, there's an increase of 131,000. Education, 2.2 million. Um public works shows a negative number, but that's the trash enterprise fund that we shifted to a different uh account. Excuse [clears throat] me. Uh, health and human services shows an increase of 25,000. Culture and recreation, we've decreased by 62,000. And, uh, our debt services have increased by 252,000. That has to do mainly with, um, some interest on some payments that we have to make as well as a one of the firetruck payments. Next slide, Amber.

All right. Um, we added something to this agenda or this uh warrant to try to make things a little easier. People are always confused at what the term unclassified means. So, all municipal budgets carry a term called unclassified. And [snorts] it's where your pensions, health insurance, FICA, compensation reserves, all those other things that don't fit into the general structure of of town government. Um, and so if you look in your uh warrant at appendix F, that breaks down what lives in that uh line item because it is a pretty big line item at about 12 uh 9 million. Uh, next slide, Amber. Um, these are the major changes that we see in the balance budget. So unclassifides are up by uh $895,000. That includes our health insurance. Health insurance has been a real uh battle for municipalities uh over the past really three to four years. Last year we saw an increase of 18%. Um we have now moved to a different um health insurance collaborative which uh so far our initial um estimate is about 5.09%. um which you know five years ago would have been a real bad number but today is is pretty good. Um [snorts] we continue to chase a lot of problems related to uh price increases and and revenues not keeping pace with our increased costs. That's anything from capital um to staffing um across the board really. Um this budget uh has a number of reductions in it. Um, so we would reduce one administrative assistant to the planning and conservation department, one part-time building instruct inspector, uh, one assistant engineer. Uh, Silver Lake

Beach would be closed uh, in 2027. Um, and the Grafton public schools were looking at about I think the latest the last number Jay and I talked about was about 11.5 um, staff members. Um, this budget also adds a full-time firefighter. Next slide, Amber. Okay. Um, article 15 is our contingent budget. Um, and I just want to take a second to explain what the contingent budget is. So, the contingent budget, uh, at $1.3 million restores, uh, most of what I just discussed. Um, and it is exactly what it sounds like. It's contingent on a Proposition 2 and a half override passing. Where the confusion lies for a lot of people is that this is disconnected from the ballot initiative. So, if you vote no on the contingent budget and the ballot passes for an override, you now have all of that budget capacity, but you haven't appropriated any of that money. So, it's a little confusing, but um whether this passes or not, the override ballot still takes place. You still vote when you go to the ballot on an override. Um if this article were to fail and the override were to pass, we have until roughly November to December when the tax rate gets set to appropriate money out of it. And if we don't, then it's a moot point. So, if this were to fail tonight and an override were to pass, I would suspect that the town would call a special town meeting to see if we wanted to appropriate those funds. Okay. A little confusing. If you have any questions when we get to article 15, feel free to ask um because it's a it's a complicated one.

All right. Amber is already on article 16, appendix C in your uh warrant. Uh this is our capital plan as I [snorts] submitted to the select board and the finance committee. Um it's about $2.5 million um with a million of that going to the schools. Uh $100,000 of that going to the conservation commission um for invasive species removal. Um engineering is $150,000. That's our MS4 storm water um spending. Uh the fire department has a whole bunch of um um facility needs that equal up to about 590,000 spread between all three of the fire departments. Uh [snorts] the highway department has a one-tonon dump and a articulated loader for a total of 545,000. Police department has two cruisers at 148,000. Uh and the town administrator has 50,000. It's not for me. Um it is for the flet street well. Every 10 years we have to do a more uh in-depth study of the contamination uh in that area and now we're at year 10. So we need to do that. Amber, thank you. Um this plan as I proposed to the select board carries uh $89,800 from our capital stabilization account and uh 1,775,000 from free cash. Uh lastly, I don't know if you mentioned article 28, madam moderator, but I'll go over that. Uh anyways, this is tied to um article uh 16 that we were just discussing, right? Did I just say that wrong? No. Okay, I'm correct. Um so this is tied to article 16. Uh the entire roof at the Grafton Middle School needs to be replaced. And I think the the the schools have a small presentation to to

highlight their plan. The total project cost is $5.5 million. So, article 28 seeks to authorize the borrowing of up to $4 million. The select board has voted to fund $1.5 million of the project from our municipal stabilization account, which currently has about 5.6 million in it. Um, and so they've they've tried to thread that needle a little bit of using some available funds um while also borrowing the remainder. And I think that is it. Uh, little shorter than what I had planned, but I think I covered all the bases. So feel free to ask any questions when we get to those articles. Be happy to answer them. None of these articles are in

these are part of the consent. There was a motion made and approved to move the article 14, 15, 16, and 28 to the top of the warrant articles. So, we're going to vote on those and then go back to the consent agendas. Okay. Thank you, Evan. Article 14. Madam moderator, Mr. Jefferson.

I move that the town vote to raise and appropriate a sum of money in the amount of 82,264,860 as recommended by the town administrator and the finance committee and is outlined in appendix A printed in the May 2026 annual town meeting amendment packet for the purposes of funding the operation of several town departments in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026.

Second. Motion made and seconded. The town clerk is going to read appendix A details. Any category you wish to discuss, call out a hold. Those categories held will be removed and we will then vote on the remaining budget. Then each category will be discussed and voted on individually in the order that they appear in appendix A. Amy, will you please read appendix A, detailed budget? Total moderator 100. Total select board 56,474. Total town administrator 477,666. Total finance committee $3,760. Total reserve fund $75,000. Total town accountant $323,60. Total assessors 265,185. Total revaluation $31,200. Total treasurer collector 342,489. Total legal 1330,000. Total human resources 222,141.

Total information technology $427,800. Total copers 33,000. Total town clerk $218,644. Total um is this election and registration 89,75 total cable TV $3,000 total is conservation commission 149,13 $1.

Sorry, we haven't completed I haven't opened the question yet. So, she's still reading the line items.

Total planning board 181,633. Total appeals board $42,189. Total Farm Farmersville Firehouse $2,350. Total SGCH 25,000 uh 25,700. Total municipal center $527,118. Total unclassified 12,891,91. Total fuel and gasoline 150,000. Total police department 3,439,175. Total fire department 1,196,931. Total inspection of buildings $269,913. Total gas inspector $15,648. Total plumbing inspector $15,848. Total seal sealer of weights $9,025. Total wiring expctor uh $23,300 $344. Total energy management $8,150.

Total animal control um $50,56. Total animal inspector $3,300. Total engineering $3,300. Total highway department 1,741,316. Total sanitation 2008,3 or I'm sorry 208 200,8,000. Total snow and ice control 2,000 or $200,000, excuse me. Total street lighting, $4,000 or $42,000. Total cemetery and park department $393,984. Total health department 187,964. Uh total uh Council on Aging $285,618. Total veteran services $27,522. Total library 1,300 310,246. Total recreation $255,5 uh $211. Total Nelson Library $2,200.

Total retirement and debt is $4,996,990. Total interest 1,186,440 or $314 $41, excuse me. 1,186,441.

Amy, can you go back and do the total for the public schools? Yes. To be included. Uh 49,454,150.

Thank you. There were two holds. Yeah, I gotta pull the I got to do the math. I have it. Oh, thank you. See how this Are you going to take the whole vote or are you going to do

the holds first? It'll be quick. The first hold was on emergency management. $1,400 for personnel. Scott Sharpen here, 58 Barber Jean Street, Grath, Massachusetts, 01 something something something. Um, can we just roll that personnel into the expenses? I mean, we have a full-time chief, right? He's EMD. There reason I have two lines there. It's odd. That's all. Not a It's a procedural thing. I'm not I don't care about the budget.

Is what it is, but just a comment for Evan. Are you just questioning why we separate out the personnel services from the expenses? Yeah, it's short money. I mean, just rolling into one line, right? No, she doesn't agree with me. Is it a stipen or something? It it's a stipen and it's the code red system in there. Oh, yeah. We No, we got code red. I didn't know it was a stipen. Y generally you roll it in. That's good. Thank you, moderator. Thank you. Are you removing your hold on that article on that? Yeah, I'll remove the hold. Um, do you want me to do another one while I'm up here or just

No, no, you can let someone else talk. You can get back in line if you want, though. I would love to. Okay. Hi, Kathy Cedarberg, the Grafton emergency manager, not the chief. Um, so it is my stipen. Thank you. Thank you, Kathy. Hi, uh, Taylor Frederick, 12 Institute Road. Um, I was just wondering if the flock cameras are included in this line budget and where they fall. The flock I can answer the question. The cameras that we've had,

the flock cameras do not live in this budget. They were funded last year by a capital um, request and that was funded for two years. So there's nothing in this budget that relates to flock. They will be in the fiscal 28 budget. Uh and they will have a line item that will live under the police department. Okay. So that would be under the police department and that would be voted on next year's Yeah. In the same process that we're doing. Thank you. Yep. You got it. Regarding the hold on Nelson Library.

Yes. M madam moderator. uh quickly like we have 1,200 bucks personal services again who who is that for the town. Can't we just roll that into the operating budget and not have like two lines for them to manage if personnel is slow and you need more services? Like we seems like it'd be easier to put it in one line as opposed to the personnel and expenses. That's all it there's no response necessary. Just commenting on making the budget a little easier. Okay. Okay. All right. So, does that effectively remove all the holds? Yes. Yes. All right.

Is there any further discussion on the motion? Hearing none. All those in favor say I. I. Again, I remind you to please be respectful. All those opposed. I declare the motion carried by the required majority. Article 15. Madam moderator, I can't hear you. Madam moderator, there we go. Mr. Dolphin.

I move the town vote to raise and appropriate1,370,363 to fund the lines as outlined in appendix B for the fiscal year beginning July 1st, 2026 contingent upon the passage of the proposition 2 and a half ballot question pursuant to master law chapter 59 section 21C.

Motion has been made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Come on down. I'm going to take him first. I saw him coming. You had a shorter distance to go, but he hit is a personal friend of mine. Okay. He yields the floor. Madam moderator, um,

is it possible to Can you get a little bit closer? Oh. Is it possible to combine not combine in a vote, but combine in a discussion article 15 and article 28? Because a lot of the same questions are about Proposition 2 and a half. And we don't I don't think we need to answer them twice. I think we can take the questions for this article as they come up and that may answer questions as it relates to article 28, but they each will be debated individually.

So what is your question for article 15? Peter Adams, 100 Brigham Hill Road, Grafton. I would like to move for ballot vote on article 15 and article 28. Can only do one at a time. So you can move to go to a ballot vote for article 15. The reason I'm doing it for both is so I don't have to come up here twice. And because it is so timeconsuming to do a ballot vote, I would like to do both of them at the same time to save time.

We will not do a ballot vote on two articles at the same time. We'll do one at a time because there's no way. You're making the assumption that everyone in this room is going to vote the same way on both articles. You only get one vote per article. You only get one vote per article. So if you hand out two pieces of paper, one for article 115 and one for article 28,

that is not how the ballot vote is set up. It's set up with yes or no. There are no numbers attached to it. If you would like to do a ballot vote for article 15, we can have that. It requires 21 people to move forward for a ballot vote. I move we I move for a ballot vote on article 15. I need 21 people to come forward. Can I stand and ask for a ballot vote?

Can I discuss my motion? The reason I'm doing this, and I'm doing it hesitantly, is because on an emotional article like this, a lot of people will not vote. They'll just sit. You'll try the the the uh voice vote. That won't work. Then we'll do a hand vote. That'll get too confusing. Then we'll have to do a standing vote, I assume. And a lot of people don't like to be sneered at. They don't like to have their neighbors know how they're voting. That's why I'm doing this.

I need 21 people to come forward. Come forward and ask for a ballot vote. That's that is what is required by our bylaws. You have to come forward or just stand up. Just stand up. I need to have 21 people standing to ask for a ballot. Okay.

Okay. So, if we go to a ballot vote and the first option is a voice vote. All in favor say I. All opposed name. If that is unable to determine the call of the vote, then we go to a standing vote. And I will call each section one at a time. And I have tellers ready to go to count people standing. All the eyes will be counted. Then all the nazs will be counted. And then we will tally the votes. A 21 people standing in the audience.

I'm speaking. He asked a question. I am still answering his question. So if we go to a ballot vote, a secret ballot vote. I need to pull my notes because we did prepare for that. We would set up ballots in five locations, ballot boxes in five locations, and you would be issued, you would go back out to the entryway, and every registered voter would get a piece of paper that says yes and one that says no. And then you would come up and put your vote in the box. You would put your vote in the box and your whatever the other piece of paper is would have to be put into a trash can. Then all of the ballot boxes are unsealed and counted by the town clerk and then we would be able to declare the vote. Sorry, I'm still trying to find my notes on the ballot vote. One, two, three, four, five. There are enough people requesting a ballot vote for article 15.

There are there will be a brief recess while we prepare for the ballot vote. Please, the town clerk and the election workers are going to bring the ballot boxes in here. They will be located two in the front of the room, two in the back of the room, and one in the commons area. When you get in line to go up to the ballot box, you will be given a piece of paper. You will put your vote into the ballot box and discard the other ticket. Then I will count, they will count the votes. Before we do that, they're going to bring the ballot boxes in here to verify that I have certified that they are empty. Then I will put zip ties on the ballot boxes to make them secure so they cannot be tampered with. When you come to the station to pick up your paper, you'll put one in the ballot box and one in the trash. Thank you for your patience. your question.

Yes. Go to the microphone.

David Grispen, five Stratton Road, Grafton. Um, first uh madam moderator did an excellent job tonight. It was very pleasurable. Thank you.

Thank you. Uh secondly, before I address this uh article 15, I think we owe a gred of datitude to um Mr. Otton and Mr. Alamo for their service to the um select board. I've attended as many meetings as I could in the last few months to get educated on this issue. and um I know how difficult and um stressful their job can be and I would hope we would give them the same round of applause we gave the moderator. Thank you very much. [applause] I guess I'm what's called the trifecta of Grafton. I've lived in Grafton for 76 years. I was a police officer from 1974 to 1987. My father was a fire chief for 25 years and served on the fire department for 45. And I've owned the Sunshine Sign Corporation in North Grafton for 35 years since 1987. Um, I have a a very very strong love of the town. Um, in the old days when it was much smaller, I knew a lot of people. Unfortunately, today I don't. But I've tried to um spend a great deal of time educating myself to um this issue because I know it's a very hot topic and I know also know that most folks um don't have a deep understanding of all the issues behind um the override for the schools and um it becomes a very emotional vote. Um, you're either 100% yes or you're I'm not voting for the override. Um, I've had

the pleasure of talking to the select board members. I've talked to the town assessor. I've talked to school committee members. I've talked to finance committee. And I've also had the pleasure of talking with the school committee chair um, Leora. Is she here tonight? If she is, I would tell you she is a um a really really good representative of our school. She's a very very very deeply passionate and kind person. And I had two um very very engaging, intelligent conversations with her and thank you. [snorts] The the real issue with this lies in the fact that um my sister worked in the Grafton school system. She went on to be the uh basketball coach at Clark for 32 years. Both of my sons are engineers, so they're well educated. And I think that everyone in this room agrees we need um a very very strong school system with very very dedicated teachers. the the issue becomes um that what is the cost to do that and Leora had a very interesting point when I chatted with her where she said that on the one hand she's deeply passionate about providing the best that we can for the teachers but on the second hand she's worried about her mother being able to afford her taxes and I know in my own personal situation and I just built a new house on Stratton Road. Um my tax base right now is about 13,200.

I did my best um talking to the town assessor uh who again was extremely helpful to try to project my um tax base. I believe my taxes will go up about um $2,000 in year five if the $5 million does pass, which will put my tax bill roughly somewhere approaching uh 16,000, which becomes a real expense for a lot of people. So, I I would ask you to to really take the time to understand that um yes, we definitely need a good school system. Yes, the teachers have an extremely difficult job today in trying to educate folks and but there is also a balance to how much we can afford to do that. And when you really look at it and you try to deeply understand it, um, Mr. Doffany back in December asked for the school budget so that he could use his business acriman to understand could there be any savings there. Um, Miss Foley, another astute business person, asked for, "Is there any way to incur more revenue to help balance the school budget?" None of these issues were developed. And um today we're we're looking at we're looking at $5 million um over five years, which the school committee has already determined is [snorts] not enough money to get us to the finish line. So in all probability in year five, we will be back again with another override. And I've said from day one after the first couple of meetings and especially in listening to Mr.

Dolphin's proposal which said let's do a three-year let's get out of this um issue that we have this year because the new school contract gave [snorts]

um approximately $2 million in salary raises and the town had $2.4 million in available monies. So um basically most of our available monies was used up by school salaries. I'm 100% in favor of paying teachers everything that they're worth giving the difficulty of their job. But there does become a point where how much can the town afford? And I think that Mr. Dany's proposal was kind of put on the side. In addition, he asked for a school budget back in December so that he could examine it. um given his vast business experience very very capable of doing that this was not developed. Miss Foley asked for is there any way to increase revenues as a way to to reduce um if you can't reduce expenses you can increase revenues. This again was not developed and I've always said this from the beginning. I think one of the one of the fatal issues with getting this to what I call an intelligent override is that and Mr. Jefferson will bristle at this, but I've always called the select board the best and brightest. He doesn't like me to use that. So, um I would say that the select board sits as kind of the global entity and I like having them be in the process early on because they can balance the needs of a particular department with taxpayer dollars. And I I certainly think that um I I want the teachers to be overpaid so they don't leave. I and I believe that that can be achieved, but I

don't think that there's been a good diligent process in examining any ways to reduce expenses. And I think that um Mr. Dolphin's approach, sir, I'm going to ask you to please wrap it up. Yep. Sorry. To be clear, our town bylaw allows for the first per time a person goes up to the microphone that there is no time limit on that. There is only a time limit the second time someone comes up.

It's it's extremely important for people to understand that this is a legal legislative body when it comes into motion. It is very frustrating, but mass general law governs how this works. That was a filibuster and it was very well done. And some of the things mention that, you know, the dutiful and astute select board members picked a number that wasn't enough. Well, they were given every budget. They waited as long as possible and then they picked a random number that was below what was asked for for level services. Not very astute. We had all of this information. 77% of towns don't get enough funding for their schools because they get 150 per pupil increase every year. 23% get needs based. That is not enough. And I mean, I'm not going to take up all your time. I will not give you my life story, though. I'm sure you all want to hear it.

It is extremely important that you know your frustrations are warranted and are held by all of us. You should be wondering why three times as many clickers as average attendees wasn't enough this year specifically. You should be wondering why we had to go outside and back inside while decision made. And you should understand that those frustrations have been compounding in so many of us over the last decade where we've had less than 2% turnout at these events and important decisions like this were made by so few people. Why was 7% of our electorate turning out enough to break the system? That's what you should be asking. Why two members of a board could stand up and hold this entire vote off for a potential two hours? Two members of a board are able to do that now. stand up and push back all of our votes. Why is that possible? Why are we saying stuff like we haven't done any cuts to our school when we cut seven teachers last year? How can someone get up and say that we haven't made cuts to our schools last year? Seven teachers. When we regionalized our emergency services, when we got all of our tax our trash out of our tax base, and yes, it's going to cost you more bags. And that sucks. And it's val it's warranted to say that sucks, but it got it out of our tax base. That is creative thinking. When we moved our health care out of the mass conglomerate and into something more personal, that is creative thinking. Think about why you were just got up and told they haven't made cuts in their schools. We need to do a ballot vote because people aren't comfortable voting. I've never seen that in my entire life. I'm young. I'm young. But I've never once in my entire life seen people come to this event and be afraid to put their hand up on a ballot. Never. I was here for the library. I was here for this high school. Never once. You were told there were no school cuts when seven teachers were fired. You were told that the select board looked at all of the budgets when they picked a number

that was not suggested by any study. They were shown. Why were you told these things when they are not true? Ask yourself why they felt comfortable telling you things that are provably not true. Ask yourselves that. Thank you. John Bariski, 5 Elmar Drive. Uh, I just want to read a quick note from my uh, eighth grade daughter of Jasmine. To the town of Grafton. I have lived here in Grafton my whole life. I've always loved my schools and education and I have really enjoyed all the different programs like music and art. Passing the override is the most important thing for Grafton right now. and every single one of your votes is determining our futures. The students of Grafton deserve everything this override provides. To all parents and residents out there who are against this override, I know some of you may think the younger generation isn't going anywhere, but I assure you that your single vote saying no may be guaranteeing that exact point. Remember, we only get one Grafton. Make the right choice and vote yes. Thank you. Leora

Leora Braum, 74 Adams Road, chair of the school depart uh committee. Um I do want to thank Mr. Glisten for engaging authentically with me and asking me lots of questions about our budget um whether I move the needle or not. Um I do want to point out before I sort of dive into my remarks that we did actually present a budget in December. the select board just didn't particularly like it and asked us to to rework it, but they had numbers to look at starting very early on. And I shouldn't say the select board as a whole, some members of the select board. Um, I do want to speak plainly about why this override is not the result of irresponsible spending by our schools. The reality is that Grafton consistently spends less on education than most communities across Massachusetts. In fact, we are eighth from last. eighth from last in per pupil spending in the entire state. That means that 312 districts in the Commonwealth spend more per student than we do. So when people ask whether the schools need to tighten their belts further, it's important to understand our staff and administrators have already been operating lean for years. An override is never an easy conversation and nobody takes it lightly. I get it. Mr. Glisten mentioned it. Everybody has financial pressures. We get that. It's important to to be clear that we do not take this lightly and we respect that this decision really affects everybody. But we also have a responsibility to be honest about the consequences of doing nothing. We have 100% been spoiled in this town with our teachers and our school departments. 100%. Our educators have delivered unbelievable results with nothing, very little. It is shocking what we've been

able to achieve here. And it's really easy to assume that we'll figure it out. That no, you know, they've always made it work. They're going to continue to make it work. But the the end of the road has arrived. We are done. Basically, without additional funding, the Grafton miracle is over, which is fine. There's no more fat to cut. And I've heard many residents say that we should just be making the hard decisions. That's exactly what we're going to do tonight. You guys are making the decision. You are making the hard decisions. We're turning it over to the taxpayers. Do we want to continue to provide the same services and education that we always have, or do we fundamentally want to change what we offer? That's the question. I hope you'll join me in continuing to make Grafton a place people and families want to live. Oh,

Mr. Maher

Gregory Mah, 36 Ferry Street, member of multiple boards and committees, but speaking on my own behalf, I want to correct a couple of inaccuracies in the first statement. The first was that the select board was not given the budget when they asked for it in January. That is incorrect. The budget was posted publicly in December after it was reviewed in multiple meetings. The only reason a select board member would not have access to the budget is they didn't want it. There was a discussion that there have been no cuts. We used millions of dollars of one-time funds and cut people last year so that we could delay this override. This override has been delayed twice now. To imply that there have been no cuts made, there have been no changes made is simply not true. Thank you, Matt. Madam moderator, thank you. Scott Shetier, 58 Barber Jean Street. Couple quick things. I'm not going to uh uh uh state my opinion on the article. Uh Proposition 2 and a half is an arbitrary number. It was an arbitrary number that was brought up a long time ago when two 2% interest and 2% cost of living was a thing. It's no longer the case. Obviously, my life doesn't have that. My job doesn't have that. It is what it is. It's unfortunate that we're in the position we're in. I would ask two things. one a point of order that the massive amount of applause every time it goes in the favor of the majority is time consuming and might be inappropriate but on the second side which is a little more in accordance with Robert's rules I moved a question

a question after speaking yes right then I'm going to step aside I'm gonna let the gentleman behind me move to order thank you sirelcome you're welcome Go ahead. Excuse you. No, it's over here. She was waiting in line before you two came down. Sorry. Thank you. Track. The people who are in line now have been waiting longer than that side of the room.

Hi, Moren Spire. Uh 51 Wester Street, Grafton, Mass. Um I want to preface with this as I'm someone who believes in the power of education. I work at a trade school in town that has had nothing but cutbacks and level of funding despite inflation for the past decade. Um, I am a strong supporter of first responders and understand how challenging the job is. My uncle was a police officer for the city of Westfield for over 30 years. Um, but I'm also someone that understands that there are limits and that there are also consequences. And as right now, the average workingclass person is struggling. Um, some basic facts about our town. The town of Grafton has a very low crime rate. There's only 2.16 crimes per thousand people. It's 89% lower than the national average. It consistently ranks as one of the top 10 safest towns in Massachusetts. So whatever happens tonight, we're still probably going to be okay in that department. Um Massachusetts is rated number one in the education in the entire country. By virtue of living in this state, your children are already receiving a better education than the rest of the country and most of the world. Uh, Grafton public schools are performing extremely well in most metrics that actually matter. MCCAST scores and proficiency rates compared to the rest of the state surpass state averages by 6 to 13% depending on the subject. SAT scores at Grafton High School are an average rate of 1250 out of 1600. This both exceeds the state and national averages. The average in the state of Massachusetts is 1,114. Approximately 73 to 75% of graduating students from Grafton pursue higher education right out of high school. This is much higher than both state and national averages. To give you perspective, 47% of adults in Massachusetts hold a bachelor's degree. High school graduation rates are almost at 99%, significantly higher than the state national averages.

Whatever happens tonight, our kids are probably going to be fine, and that's a good thing. On the contrary, though, the average American is struggling to pay its bills right now, whether we want to admit this or not. The country is at war and gas prices have been surging. The average person is struggling with the costs of rent and food skyrocketing, while wages have remained largely stagnant by comparison. A recent Bank Crate study survey reveals that nearly half of American adults would be unable to pay an unexpected out of medical bill of just $500 without resorting to debt or borrowing. Nearly two out of three workers report that their income has not kept with rising costs of living and household expenses. Less than three in five workers have received a raise um which is the lowest share in polling in the last four years of the survey. Many people are still recovering from hyperinflation from the pandemic. The town of Grafton already has a higher rate of property tax than the average Massachusetts tax rate for property tax. We already tax $13.69 per thousand of assessed value where the state average is $1250 per thousand of assessed value. The average property tax bill is nearly $1,000 higher than the state average. These t these tax hikes will disproportionately hurt workingclass and lowincome homeowners and renters, which also typically include statistically people of color. They'll disproportionately hurt those that are living on a fixed income, such as people with disabilities and the elderly. Um tax increases to landlords we've passed on to tenants who can barely afford the high rents in the area as it is. Um, those on a fixed income with potentially um that are disabled or elderly might have to choose between their tax bill

and their medical expenses. Even though we think that these tax hikes are a good intention, everybody wants safer community and uh good schools for their kids, we're not really looking at what it could potentially do to marginalized people in the community. And we may be pushing out some of our neighbors who are at this point in the most need of help and the most vulnerable. I hope that you actually take this into consideration with your vote. Taylor Frederick, 12 Institute Road. Um, I just want to say, taking into consideration what the woman ahead of me said, um, that in Massachusetts we have really good schools. We have the best education in the country. So, by virtue of being in Massachusetts, our kids are going to get a good education. But as a woman a few people ahead said, Grafton as a school district is eighth from the bottom in per student spending. We should be spending more on our students and we shouldn't be striving to be hitting the middle of the road or just resting on the laurels of the state as a whole assuming our kids are going to get a good enough education. If we're looking at teacher cuts, if we're looking at classroom size, where we're sitting isn't acceptable. We need more for our schools. And if we want to retain the teachers that we have, we need to pay them more. Just looking at the towns around us, North and this is from 2023 2024 Massachusetts Department of Education report. North about $102,000. That's their average salary for their teachers. Westboro 95,000.

Shrewsbury 95,000. Grafton 82,000. That's the average that we were paying our teachers. That is so des like desperate from the towns around us. And you can compare the teacher salaries to other towns in the states and say, "Oh, well, we're higher than this other district." But that's not where our teachers are going to move if they leave a job in Grafton and go to a different different district for pay. they're going to move around here. So, if we're paying our teachers far, far less than the districts around us, we're going to be losing amazing amazing teachers here. I would urge all of you to vote in favor of the override and in favor of the override budget. It's really, really important for the future of our schools. I hear all the time that Grafton has amazing schools, but it seems like the last few years we've been resting on our laurels, resting on that impression that's no longer necessarily true. We need to make sure that we're doing better for our students. I have two young kids. I want to make sure that they are getting the best education possible. Thank you,

Miss Octton. And then Mr. Carlson.

Thank you, madam moderator. Um, my name is Laura Otton, 79 Old Westboro Road. I am vice chair of the school committee. I am speaking on my own behalf. Um, when we talk about school budgets, it's easy to get lost in spreadsheets, line items, and percentages. But tonight, I want to talk about students. WPI, Clemson, Clemson, UMass Amherst, UMass LOL, Ithaca College, New York, uh, North Carolina State, Virginia Tech, Northeastern, Michigan State, Berkeley College of Music, Wentworth, San Diego, San Diego State. Those are just some of the places Grafton's class of 2026 is heading next fall. We also have students entering the Army, the Marines, and the fire department. young adults stepping up to serve their country and their communities. I know these students personally because I just went through the college process with two very different kids of my own. And I can tell you it is harder than ever today. It is not enough for kids to simply do well in school. They need rigorous classes, co-curriculars, leadership, language, technology skills, arts, athletics, internships, and community service just to compete. and our students have to compete not only with nearby districts but with students across the country and around the world. Meanwhile, many of our neighboring districts offer twice the foreign language opportunities we do in Grafton. Some districts have full string programs and broader enrichment opportunities that we simply cannot match now. And tonight we are discussing cutting even more like our elementary band and music, high school French, reduction of Spanish, middle school sports, and that's just next year. The world our students are entering is dramatically different than the one most of us grew up in. And it is very different from 2020 when many of us sat outside in the heat making another difficult override decision, unsure of what the future would look like for our

children. I can tell you this, our students are not the same as they were in 2020. This generation faces new academic pressures, mental health challenges, technological disruption, and a level of competition none of us experienced as kids. Education changes because the world changes. Every generation of students needs something different from its schools, and our responsibility is to make sure Grafton continues to meet that moment. We gave the class of 2026 the strongest education we could. They are succeeding because this community invested in them. Let's make sure we do the same for our future generation. Thank you.

Madam Carlson, Peter Carlson 42 up the road. I would like to formally move the question to the vote. Thank you. A motion to move the question has been made and seconded. This requires a majority vote. If it we vote in favor, we will move toward our ballot voting. If we vote against it, we will continue to bait on this article. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay.

The question has been moved. We will now come forward and deal with the ballot boxes. Can everyone please return to their seats? The town clerk has completed tabulating the votes.

Thank you all for your patience. I declare the motion carried by the required majority 575 to 131. I had been asked, excuse me, I had been asked pri while the votes were being counted if I would share what the last total number of registered voters were. It was 716. This passed by a majority. Thank you.

Article 16. Madam moderator. Oh, get a little closer, Mark. That's pretty close. Madam moderator, Mr. Alamo.

I move that the town vote to appropriate and transfer funds in the amount of $1,775,000 from free cash. Appropriate and transfer 8009 $89,800 from capital stabilization fund and appropriate and transfer 1,500,000 from municipal stabilization for a total appropriation of $4,84,800 for the funding of capital projects and purchases during the fiscal period from July 1, 2026 to June June 30, 2027 as outlined in appendix C of the May 2026 annual town meeting warrant.

Second motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Madam moderator. Mr. Hadad.

Thank you. My name's Mark Hatad, 154 Providence Road. On behalf of the finance committee, I move to amend article 16 by removing the following items from the list of the proposed capital projects in appendix C of the warrant for the 2026 Springtown meeting. Treatment of terrestrial invasives in the amount of 27,000. Treatment of aquatic invasives in the amount of 74,000. Station 2 and station 3 epoxy apparatus bay floors in the amount of 50,000. Replace one ton dump truck in the amount of 150,000. Replace loader in the amount of 395,000. roof repair at the Grafton public schools in the amount of $250,000 and further that the total amount originally allocated for these projects in appendix C $946,000 be reallocated to the roof replacement project for the Grafton Middle School such that the total amount allocated for the roof replacement project and the motion is increased to $2,446,000.

Second. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on this motion? If I may, madam moderator,

as stated in the motion, this amendment removes several projects from appendix C totaling $946,000. Those funds would instead be redirected to the Grafton Middle School replacement project, increasing the total allocation from 1.5 million to approximately 2.45 million. The reason for this amendment is straightforward. We need to ensure that the cost that the most critical portions of this roof can be replaced this summer, even if the debt exclusion question is defeated at the ballot box. The 1.5 million that is allocated for the roof is not sufficient to address the most critical repairs. Should the debt exclusion fail, the school department would be unable to address these critical repairs. In the opinion of the finance committee, having a plan in place to address this is not only crucial but responsible management. Last spring, the town received a grant to evaluate all municipal roofs. That study concluded that the eight sections of the more than 60-year-old Grafton Middle School roof were in the worst condition in town with six sections requiring replacement as soon as possible. Those six sections are located over the main classrooms and hallways of the building. At the October town meeting, funds were appropriated for the design and bid documents for this project. We now know that the cost to replace the most critical sections is estimated to be between 2 million and 2.6 million. As currently written, this article does not allocate enough money to complete the critical work independently. Timing is also essential because the roof sections are directly above occupied classrooms and corridors. The work cannot be realistically occurred during the school year. If we want this replacement completed before students return in the fall, we must ensure sufficient funding is available now in the event that the entire roof project is not approved. This amendment does not increase the overall appropriation under the article. It simply postpones projects that can be reasonably wait one year and prioritize the most urgent capital need facing the town today, which is protecting our school building and ensuring a safe environment for students and staff. The finance committee urges you to support this amendment. Thank you.

Is there any other discussion on the motion to amend?

A uh Scott Shetier, 58 Robert Jean Street. Yeah, I I I'm going to agree. I think we should go to the MSBA, get the 50% roof replacement for us. We have enough with the uh uh override that just got passed. We don't need a debt exclusion for this. Um I think the opportunity to take the engineering design on the roof and go to the MSBA for a 50% grant is probably the appropriate action. You say thank you. No, thank you.

Thank you. No, there's no question. You want a question? All right. Why didn't Why did we not go to the MSBA with the full roof replacement with full appropriation at town meeting as opposed to a partial approach? That works, right?

Dr. Cummings. Thank you. Jay Cummings, one George Hill Road, superintendent of schools. Um, I wish we could have, you have to have the full design services. So for us, it was $400 and something thousands in months worth worth of the design work to go to MSBA. They also used to open up for roofing grants every year. They switched a year ago. Now they do it every other year. So the next opening is January 2027. It's called the accelerated repair grant program. There's nothing really accelerated about it. Um you apply and it they don't tell you if you're even accepted for 10 months. It then takes if you're accepted three additional years for the work to be done. Um obviously you'll see if we do our little presentation that those two two out of the four areas are that they can't wait under any circumstances. I'm not even comfortable waiting until next school year, never mind four years from now. Um the other two pieces, if the town chose to the the two sections that you'll see are over the cafeteria and the auditorium and gymnasium. Um they have a fighting chance of wait of we could get we could apply if we're accepted, do th those two sections in four years and probably be okay. Um, but the two critical ones can't wait.

Thank you. Is there any other discussion on the motion to amend? Hearing none, this requires a simple majority. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay.

I declare the motion has carried. The motion to amend has passed. I will now take a vote on article 16 as amended. This does require a twothirds majority. All those in favor, please say I. I.

All those opposed, please say nay. All those opposed, please say nay.

Motion passed. I apologize. Is there any discussion on the now amended motion? So, we are voting to the new allocations as outlined in the motion to amend. This requires a twothirds majority. All those in favor of the amended motion, please say I. I.

All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required twothirds majority. Article 28. Madam moderator, Mr. Grafton.

I move that the town vote to raise and appropriate $4 million by borrowing to design and construct the complete replacement of the roof at the Grafton Middle School, including all costs in incident in incidental and related thereto and to authorize the treasurer with the approval of the select board to issue any bonds or notes for that purpose provided that said appropriation and debt authorization be contingent upon passage of a Proposition 2 and a half ballot. Question under Massachusetts General Laws chapter 59 section 21C.

Motion made and seconded. Before I open the discussion on this motion, Frank Rothell be making a brief presentation.

[snorts]

Good evening.

Grafton Middle School roof project. Uh I just have four quick slides to share with everyone. uh the agenda project timeline. It's going to cover the critical need needs analysis and the option options and cost estimates. So the GMS roof project uh we could say it started in May 20 uh 22nd 2025. uh the town commissioned uh a roof study to be completed of all the roofs in perhaps the town but definitely for the school department which is where I work and um fall town meaning we approved funding for design services. Those design services are currently uh being uh addressed and we contracted with them following town meeting and the cost estimates were provided on April 7th. the roof project. Of all the schools, Grafton Middle Schools uh was the most in in need to have a the roof replaced. Couple of quick quotes from the study. The Garland report, roughly half of this roof is in dire need of replacement, which was just the the half that was just addressed by the previous comments. And please know that catastrophic failure and other health dangers are dangerously evident on that roof if replacement is put off any longer. The next slide in the red shows the areas of the roof that are saturated. This is when the roof is dry. The box at the bottom right hand corner is where the classrooms are. And that roof is a foam roof that's over an old tar roof. I know many people in in the audience have certainly attended this school and they're aware that that roof has been problematic for quite a bit. And then the quote unquote middle section, the hallway section is that that piece in the middle there. Uh we we do think that there's, as Dr. Cumins

pointed out, a fighting chance for the cafeteria roof, which is top middle, and on the left, that's the gym and auditorium with uh just keeping up with repairs uh every every year and following a different process perhaps. So, the full roof replacement is going to be somewhere between 4.2 and 5.2 million. That would be the entirety of um all the different roof sections. If we just did the center section and area H, which is what was outlined on the previous slide, that should fall somewhere between 2 million and 2.6 million. And if we just did the classroom area H only, which is where the present foam system is, that's uh about 1.4 forward to $1.7 million.

Thank you. Thank you. Motion is made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Hearing? None. This requires a 2/3 majority. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay.

I declare the motion has carried by the required twothirds majority. We'll now return to article two. Madame chair, madame moderator. Mr. Alamo, I move the town vote to transfer an appropriate sum of money in the amount of $310,500 from free cash to the OPEB trust account.

Second. I realize that a lot of you are going to be leaving, but if you could please keep your voices down and be respectful of those of us that are staying to finish out the articles. Thank you. I'm sorry, Mr. Almo. Can you repeat that motion? Yes, madam moderator, I move the town vote to transfer and appropriate a sum of money in the amount of $310,500 from free cash to the OPED trust account.

Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Hearing none. This is a simple majority vote. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried. Article three. Madam moderator, Miss Foley,

I move that the board vote to transfer and appropriate a sum of money from free cash in the following amounts. $290,000 to the snow and ice account, $120,000 to the sanitation account, and $448,000 to the health insurance account for a total appropriation of $858,000 for the purpose of adjusting certain line items in the fiscal year 2026 operational budget. Second. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on article three? Hearing none. All those in favor, please say I.

All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the article has carried by the required majority. Consent agenda two. Madam moderator, Mr. often. I move that the town vote to act upon articles 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 and 13 and that they be passed by consent.

Motion made and seconded. Before I read the articles under consent agenda two, I invite the chair of the finance committee, Victoria Duckworth, to read the state of the town message. Oh, okay. Perfect. This will be a little anticlimactic, but we're going to do it. Good evening. This evening, the finance committee is reporting on the state of the town as we near the end of fiscal year 2026. Shortly, this town meeting will vote on two operational budgets for fiscal year 2027. A level spending budget within the proposition two and a half levy and a contingent budget or the level services budget. The budget that the town utilizes for FY27 will be dependent on the override vote which occurs at the general election on May 19th. Proposition 2 and a half is a Massachusetts law designed to keep taxes predictable while giving the voters the power to approve local tax increases to fund the services they believe are necessary and valuable. Lawmakers anticipated that the 2 and a.5% levy increases capped by this law would not always be sufficient to maintain town services. Prop 2 and a half gives voters the power to override the cap as needed. An override is a feature of this law designed to give voters this agency and a reflection of democracy at its very heart. The town does not take this responsibility lightly. The last override scheduled to last five years lasted six years through tight fiscal management and creative spending allocations in order to be the best steward of our tax dollars. For example, in FY26, town meeting voted for the creation of the municipal solid waste enterprise fund to remove trash collection from the operational budget while creating a much more equitable pay-to-play model. The school department deferred any employment backfilling from

retirements or resignations, including forgoing a full-time human resources director, replacing a maintenance position and two curriculum coordinators, amongst others, for a total of six full-time equivalents. The school department also used $1 million of circuit breaker funds, exhausting their rainy day accounts. Grafton Public Schools ranks eighth from the bottom on per pupil spending in the state of Massachusetts or $16,585, exemplifying both a phenomenal return on investment and extreme financial discipline. For FY27 and beyond, the town negotiated a new health insurance contract for employees, moving to the group insurance commission, saving 13% increase in costs. The town is also moving forward with the regionalized emergency communication center, taking advantage of increased regionalization of services to share necessary costs across municipalities. Additionally, the federally mandated MS4 storm water compliance fees are being moved into the capital expenditures plan to allow the use of free cash to pay for this recurring expense. In FY26, the town applied for 18 grants across the municipality totaling $2,915,040 and will continue aggressively pursuing all grant opportunities. Tonight is your first chance to decide if you would like to maintain the services Grafton provides, including but not limited to full-time engineering, expanded building and other permit issuing capacity, French classes, and middle school sports and music. or if you're willing to take those cuts to state at two and a half percent plus new growth. This is democracy in action playing out to the letter of the law as intended by our state lawmakers four decades ago. We should feel proud to be able to make our voices heard and sure ensure we also do so on May 19th on the override ballot question which will be question one. The finance committee would like to thank town administrator Evan Brousard, assistant town administrator William Blake,

administrative assistant Amber Monk, town finance director Mary Lauria, the select board superintendent of schools Dr. James Cummings, school department director of finance Kathleen Lingerini, the school committee, and all department heads for their hard work as part of the budget process this year. Thank you all for being here and taking part in deciding the future of our town. Government for the town of Grafton by the town of Grafton, your finance committee.

Thank you, Victoria. If you wish to hold an article and discuss it individually, call out hold. Any articles held will be removed and we will vote on the remaining as a consent agenda and address the held art articles in the order in which they appear on the warrant. Article four is to hear the reports of the several town officers, boards, and committees. Town meeting no longer hears reports other than the state of the town message from the finance committee. However, the town reports are available online and by request to the select board's office. Article five appoints Bridget Weber as trustee of the Nelson Park and Memorial Library and Building Fund for a term of three years. Did someone hold? Was that a yes?

Okay. Article six allows the town to raise and appropriate, borrow, or transfer funds in anticipation of reimbursement revenues from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for road repair assistance under Mass General Law Chapter 90. Article 7 authorizes the select board pursuant to article 4 section 9 of the town bylaws to sell surplus supplies, materials, and equipment having a value in excess of $25,000. Article 8 allows the town to raise revenue from a specific service and use use those revenues without appropriation to support said service. A full listing is in the warrant. Article nine authorizes the select board to request the funding of transportation services from the WRTA and to contract for and provide elderly bus services for the town of Grafton for fiscal year 27. Article 10 appropriates or reserves from the community preservation fund estimated annual revenues in the amounts recommended by the community preservation committee for its administrative expenses, community preservation projects, and other expenses in fiscal year 2027. A full listing is in the warrant. Article 11 appropriates the sum of $55,000 from the community preservation open space reserve account for the 18th of 20 interest in principal payments for the bond on the PEL farm property. Article 12 appropriates the sum of 20

$71,425 from the community preservation historical reserve account for the 12th of 20 interest in principal payments on the bond for the Grafton townhouse. Article 13 transfers $88,129 from the Community Preservation Affordable Housing Reserve Account to the Grafton Affordable Housing Trust. There's a hold on article five and article 9. I will take a motion for the other remaining articles to be passed as a consent. So moved. The consent requires a simple majority. All those in favor say I. I.

All those opposed say nay. I declare the motion carried by the majority required. Article five. Madam moderator, Mr. Doffany, I move the town vote to appoint Bridget Weber as the trustee of the Nelson Park and Memorial Library and Building Fund for the term of three years.

Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Someone held the article. Did they not have any specific questions? Alexanderino 89 Keith Hill Road, I don't have any questions. I held the article because I didn't think it fit with the other articles in the consent agenda. I have no nothing else to talk about it on though.

Okay. So, you didn't have any questions? Okay. Is there any other discussion on article five? Hearing none. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. [snorts] I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article nine. Madam moderator. Mr. Jefferson.

I move that the town vote to authorize the select board to request the funding of transportation services from the Worcester Regional Transit Authority as well as authorize it to contract for and provide elderly bus services for the period of July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on article 9?

Madam moderator Stephanie Terara, 26 Sartell Road. Um I just wanted some clarification. If we are um if they're seeking to ask for funding for this, is this going to be free for our seniors to use these buses? And where is the pickup location going to be? Do they have to get to a central location to use this? Okay, Mr. Prasad, I concur.

What about this? Give me Let me have your mic there, Andy. Um, so this is already in effect currently. So, this is just this just allows us to like board to continue that relationship with WRTA. So, we have one WRTA van that is provided to us. Um, and then we get supplemental funding for ride share and so on and so forth. So, this is run out of the senior center, but it's also available throughout the community for seniors that need rides to and from different appointments. So, some of them are are they're not really pickup points. They they request a ride and then we go pick them up and then move them to wherever they're trying to get to.

Okay. Thank you. Then I remove my hold. Okay. Thank you. Is there any other discussion on article 9? Hearing none, all those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article 17. Add a moderator.

Miss Foley. I move that the town vote to appropriate funds in the amount of $4,36,283 from the sewer enterprise receipts for the operation of the Grafton sewer department enterprise funds during the fiscal period from July 1 to 2026 to July sorry June 30th, 2027 as outlined in appendix D of the May 2026 annual town meeting warrant. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Hearing none. All those in favor say I. I.

All those opposed say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article 18. Madam moderator. Mr. I move that the town vote to appropriate funds in the amount of 1,285,675 from the Waste Management Enterprise receipts for the operation of the Waste Management Enterprise Fund during the fiscal period from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 as outlined in appendix E of the May 2026 annual town meeting warrant.

Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Hearing none. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say no. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article 19.

Madam moderator. Mr. Jefferson. I [snorts] move that the town vote to appropriate funds in the amount of $4004,500 [clears throat] from the PEG access and cable related fund to the fund, excuse me, to fund the graft and community television budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1st, 2026 as recommended by the cable oversight committee. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion hearing? None. This is a simple majority. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay.

I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article 20. Madam moderator, Mr. DNA. I move the town vote to raise and appropriate funds in the amount of 1,687,488 to pay the town's portioned share of the net operating costs and capital assessment for the Blackstone Valley Regional School District. Second. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Hearing none. All those in favor, please say I. I.

All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article 21. Madam moderator. Mr. Alamo. I move that the town vote to accept the grant of open space consisting of parcel A at 3.26 acres of undeveloped land, parcel B of 08 acres of undeveloped land, and parcel C of.12 acres of undeveloped land for a total of 3.4 46 46 acres all within the Woodland Hills subdivision. Second. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion?

Hearing none. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. Article 22. Madam moderator, Miss Foley, I move that the town vote to authorize a select board to negotiate with property owners for the acquisition by gift, purchase, or eminent domain of certain temporary and permanent easements to real property abuing Marryiam Road necessary for the replacement of the Marryiam Road culvert over Flagbrook and to further authorize the select board to acquire such easements to be paid for out of available funds and to execute any and all instruments as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this article.

Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion hearing? None. All those in favor, please say I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion carried by the required majority, article 23. Madam moderator, Mr. often.

I move that the town vote to authorize the select board to negotiate with property owners the acquisition by gift purchase or eminent domain of certain temporary and permanent easements to the real property abing Shrewsbury Street, Westboro Road, Manning Lane, and Elm Street that are necessary for the replacement of the Shrewsbury Street Railroad Bridge number G08020 and to further authorize the select board to require such easements to be paid for out of available funds and to execute any and all instruments as may be necessary to affectuate the purposes of this article. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion?

Hearing none, all those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Article 24. Madam moderator, Mr. Jefferson. I move that the town vote to repeal the vote taken as article 25 at the semiannual town meeting in October 2019 relative to the central Massachusetts mosquito control project. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion?

Hi Greg Panot 24 Pleasant Street. I just want to make sure everybody understands that the vote is kind of backwards. A yes vote means to get rid of the mosquito control project and a no vote means to keep the mosquito control project. So just keep that in mind as you're voting. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Maher.

Uh Gregory Maher, 36 Ferry Street. Uh this came up originally as part of the cost savings for the budget this year. However, we had a discussion with the finance committee with the people in charge of the central mass mosquito control project. And just to be clear, I'm speaking on my own behalf, not as part of the committee. They talked about the various things that the CMMCP does for the community and it is not aerial spraying that is done by the state. It is some of the local spraying that people can opt out of. But it also does things like testing, putting out mosquito traps, testing for the various diseases that mosquitoes carry that can cause public health problems. Without these traps, we don't know that they are here until someone gets infected. Some of these diseases have a extremely significant mortality rate and those that do not succumb to it still have uh significant illness afterwards. Um it is not a lot of money in terms of the overall budget and I say that at least for myself the amount of money is not worth a human life. Thank you. Mr. Jefferson.

Thank you, Madam Moderator. Uh Andy Jefferson, 31 Western Street. Um speaking as one representative, uh on the on the select board and also as a resident, um as Mr. Maher indicated, and as you can see, you know, through the contested vote of the finance committee, um this was something that the select board added to the warrant for for discussion tonight. Um, having met with representatives from the CMMPC and the board of health, um, I think there are a couple just quick important facts to touch on. Um, CMMPC covers our uh, control mosquito control plan including testing and and dispersement of uh, you know, chemical agents if required. It is still unclear at this point if Grafton would be required to produce its own plan and provide somebody to do that same testing and treatment. Um, currently it does seem as though the state requires this plan to be in place. Um, but we are still seeking information to confirm that. Uh, for me as as you know a solo uh resident, I would recommend at this point uh a no vote uh and and putting it off until fall town meeting at the earliest when we have a chance to um get the rest of that remaining information.

Mr. Kusher.

Dan Kusher, 79 Keith Hill Road. Um, I want to just add a couple points to this that the uh the program includes uh applying a larvaide to uh places where uh the mosquitoes are breeding. And this uh prevents the adult mosquitoes from uh from breeding. And uh it's species specific. It doesn't uh affect other uh pollinators. Uh that's a big concern. Um but the doing this larvaide treatment uh actually reduces the likelihood that we will need to do spraying later in the season for adult mosquitoes. um the uh spraying that is done uh when when they do need to do it. Uh it is done and I'm this is all stuff that the um uh representative from the program was uh telling the finance committee and the select board. Uh it is um it's done in a way that the timing is in the evening so that uh honeybees are uh out of the air and it's done in a way that it uh it only affects the mosquitoes that are flying in the air when it uh lands on uh on leaves or grass. Uh it quickly biodegrades and is no longer um effective. Uh so they they've come a long way over the years to reducing the impact on pollinators. Uh and the the result is that it this would actually be more beneficial uh as far as I see it for uh protecting pollinators than not going into the program waiting for a person to uh get uh triple E or West Nile virus and then doing more aggressive spraying uh later in the

season. Uh so I will be uh voting no to uh remain in the mosquito program. Thank you. Thank you. [snorts] Garton, 72 Brigham Hill Road. I have a question regarding if the money for this um program is still in the budget or if it's already been removed. If we don't repeal this vote, is there an appropriation to pay for the costs associated with it? Yes.

Okay. Thank you. I think you heard me, but yes, we're we're all set. The the trend of the finance committee and Slightboard conversations kind of led us to believe that we should keep that funding in the budget. Um, thank you. Is there any other discussion on this motion?

Hearing none. And to repeat what the gentleman said at the beginning because it is to repeal something that a yes vote would pull us out of the central mass com mosquito control commission. A no vote will keep us in the CMMC. All those in favor please say I. All those opposed please say nay. I declare the motion defeated by the required majority. Article 25. Madam moderator,

Mr. Daning. I move the town vote to appropriate the sum of money in the amount of $10,500 from the FY 2027 community preservation historical reserve for the purpose of restoring eight original 19th century Courier and Ives firehouse themed prints with such funds to be expended by June 30th, 2028 unless the CPC by majority votes to extend the deadline. Second motion made and seconded. Before I open the discussion on the motion, Skip Courier will be making a brief presentation.

Roger Curry 3 Matthew Circle in North Grafton. Um retired member of the fire department. The three companies have their own social groups and um we've had these pictures hanging on the wall at the fire station in frames. These are taken out of frames. um since we believe we purchased them in 1873. They have some light damage and some acid damage to the paper from what they were mounted in. Um and we would like to have this assistance in restoring the prints to get as close to their original condition and prevent any light and further water or acid damage to them. Anything else? Okay. Any discussion on the motion? All those in favor, please say I.

I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion carried by the required majority. Article 26. Madam moderator. Mr. Alamo. I move that the town vote to appropriate a sum of money in the amount of $90,000 from the fiscal year 2027 community preservation budgeted reserve for the purpose of contributing to the funding of a Blackstone Greenway bikeway feasibility and concept study with such funds to be expended by June 30th, 2028 unless the CPC by majority vote extends the deadline.

Second. Motion made and seconded. Is there any discussion on the motion? Madam moderator.

Oh, sorry. Roger Trhan for old up road chair of accessibility advisory commission. uh at its meeting of April 28th, accessibility advisory commission voted in favor of this article and it aligns with uh the commission's charge which includes assuring that all people in Grafton have an equal opportunity to participate in all functions involving living, working, and enjoying recreational activities. The project when completed would create accessible recreational space. So we're asking that you vote yes. But while I have your attention, um, we have two commission vacancies that have existed for a year out of this seven member body, uh, unexpired terms, 630 of 27 and 6:30 of 28. So, someone wants to jump in without a three-year commitment, there's a one and two years remaining on that commission. Um, and if anyone wants to sort of get a flavor of what we do, uh, starting on page 71 of the annual report, um, will detail what we did in 2025. Thank you.

Thank you, Roger. Is there any further discussion on the motion?

Hearing none, all those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. Before we address the last warrant article on the warrant, I want to take a moment to thank all of you for staying until the very end. It takes a lot of people to put this town meeting together. And despite the snafuss that we had early in the night, it was a lot of hard work and planning that was done by the people here. I'd like to thank the town administrator's office, Evan Brasad, William Blake, Cindy ID, and Amber Monk. The town clerk's office, Amy Barry, and all of our election workers who went above and beyond this evening. The Grafton Recreation and Grafton Public Library for providing babysitting this evening. And in an unrelated note, thank you Grafton Wreck for moving up the Grafton Gazebo 5K to before town meeting so I have the opportunity to share that I played third in my division and my pace of 9 minutes and 45 seconds is my new PR. I'd like to thank the Grafting Council on Aging for offering transportation to town meeting, making it easier for seniors to attend and participate in tonight's meeting. The select board, I want to take a moment to recognize that this is the last meeting sitting on the stage for Matt Otton and Mark Alamo. You both have always impressed me with the way you acknowledge each other's point of view, focus on the subject matter, and strive to get it right rather than to be right. Thank you so much for your service. [applause] Thank you to the finance committee for the months you spend reviewing the

budget and the in-depth discussions you have when reviewing every Warren article. Town Council Chris Brown for spending this beautiful May evening with us and not coming accidentally next Monday, which is when he thought the meeting was going to happen. My deputy moderator overseeing the overflow in the Commons, Dave Robbins, thank you so much for your consistent text messages keeping me apprised as to the a's and naz going on out in the overflow area. GCTV for broadcasting and recording the event. Thank you, Bill and Bob. Grafton High School for hosting the meeting. The Grafton High School pep band for performing the national anthem, which seems like it was actually last year's meeting. Grafton High School National Honor Society for working the eighth grade check-in table, supporting Dave Robbins in the overflow area, handling the wireless microphones, and assisting with the secret ballot boxes. Andrew, Liam, Kenley, Kayn, and Olivia, I really truly appreciate the time and effort that you put in for being here tonight. Grafton Middle School, for your continued support of our town meeting and encouraging our eighth graders to observe our local democracy in action. You all can't possibly understand how devastated I was that I had to ask them all to leave to make room for the registered voters. Congratulations again to Kayla Kim and thank you for stepping up and leading the pledge of allegiance. And speaking of democracy and action, our local election is coming up on Tuesday, May 19th. Please make a plan to vote. Now, back to the final business at hand.

Madam moderator, Miss Foley, I move that the town vote to accept the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 200A, Section 9A. Second. Motion made and seconded. Any discussion on the motion? Yes, sir. I'm sorry. All of my wireless microphone runners are gone, so you're going to have to come down. It's well past their bedtime.

Uh Ken Ramlad, two Mountain View Lane, North Grafton, Mass. I'm uh I'm I'm I'm going to say that uh I don't feel this is the right uh right up the time to do this for one simple reason. There there uh could be legal ramifications where a person can't uh um claim the money that's owed to them. Uh in one particular case, I have a family member that had their identity stolen and they have money that's owed to them by the state. Uh you know, and I know this is on a town level, but it could be the same situation. They can't claim this money because their identity has been stolen and they have uh no rights until they until the court systems get this straightened out for them. And it's been a 14-year process for my for my family member and it could go up to 20 years. So for the town to say that they can take uh want to take the somebody's money because uh they whatever whatever reason these people haven't come forward to get this money from the town. I feel this is wrong a wrong wrong approach.

Thank you. Any further discussion on the motion?

I guess um sorry Christine I live on Dear Elm Street in North Grafton. I guess I just don't understand the legality of that. It feels like do we have a legal right to this? I mean, is isn't unclaimed property supposed to be held out there by the state? Um, so can I just get clarification on that because I just it just doesn't feel legal. So, have we checked that?

Yes. So, this is a Massachusetts general law that if we accept that and makes it legal. And [clears throat] so, what happens now is um well, here's the intent of what 200A section 9A states is that rather than that go to the state or go to any other organization that's claiming that money. If no one has made a claim in a year, then you keep that money here in Grafton instead of letting it go to wherever else it's going to go, the state uh or any other coffer. So after a year it's just Grafton's money. It's

if it's if it's unclaimed there there's other provisions that go with this law, but that's the gist of it is that after after one year of it being unclaimed like Mr. uh Remlard's case um what and I understand that concern that doesn't apply here because even though you're going through that process of your identity theft and all you've you've claimed that money it's just in dispute. Okay. So this is uh you know someone passes away that has no family, no ne next of kin, nobody claims the money. Rather than that money go outside of Grafton, it stays here. Okay. Thank you for the clarification. Absolutely.

Alexander Reno 89 Keith Hill. I just had a quick question. So supposing that I didn't claim something and it got spent by the town and then five years later I came and claimed it. Would I still be able to get paid back then? No. Okay.

Is there any other discussion on the motion? Hi Ken Ramlad. Um is um you mentioned that uh is there a time frame on it? It's a one-year time frame. If you if no one has laid cla has made claim to the uh forfeited property, um then the town can start the the process to to take that. But um there is a whole legal process in including public notification. So we have to put an ad in the paper and push all of that out. It's not a it's not a quick process. It's almost like the tax title process. Like if if you don't pay your taxes for a year and that starts the clock, it it's a long process. It's not just going to be that one year.

Is like um say like uh you mentioned uh there was a death in a family. Um there there's elderly people here that um could have relatives in California and they don't know uh they don't know that there's uh a will. There's no will or anything like that. So it's got to go to probate and probate can take years and years and years. Correct. For it to for it take for it to take take effect. Yes. But then it's it's in the claims process when it's in probate. So, thank you.

Lesley Girtton, 72 Brigham Hill Road. What is the current process for those funds now? Are they being turned over to the state at this point after a certain period of time? Are they just being held and it's trying to clean things up at this point? That [clears throat] That's correct. They're turned over. They're turned over to correct state, right, Mary? Sorry. No, Mary's telling me I don't know what I'm talking about. Sorry, Mary. Can you come down? This is Mary Lori, our finance director and the corrector of all things Evan. [sighs] Hi, Mary Lauria. Um, you gota you got to get right up into it.

Hi, Mary Lauria, finance director. Um, currently, um, these [snorts] are like unclaimed checks from vendors. Um, so we'll post them on town website for a year and if it's then unclaimed property. Right now it's all being held in tailings. So if this warrant article is passed, it will clear up our tailings account. Thanks, Mary. Forgot about the tailings.

We'll put it towards it for sure. Is there any other discussion on the motion hearing? None. This is a simple majority. All those in favor, please say I. I. All those opposed, please say nay. I declare the motion has carried by the required majority. For those of you who placed bets, it has been 4 hours and 49 minutes since I called the meeting to order. I will entertain a motion to dismiss by voice vote. All in favor say I. I. [screaming]

All opposed. I declare the meeting dismissed. Good night. Have a great summer and I'll see you in the fall.