[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6480496,"mediaKeyId","5681166-878589429baf4ab6b24363fad5bab934","parentId",5681166,"title","Acton Finance Committee schedules joint schools meeting, hears insurance and DPW updates and adjourns","audioSeconds",437,"startMs",4031000,"endMs",4468000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5681166-878589429baf4ab6b24363fad5bab934&start=4031&end=4468","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5681166-878589429baf4ab6b24363fad5bab934/thumbnail_4031000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6480496/Town-of-Acton/Middlesex-County/Massachusetts/Acton-Finance-Committee-schedules-joint-schools-meeting-hears-insurance-and-DPW-updates-and-adjourns","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6480496-47ed31a0f8d6884ff089ab4691cce7a6/orig.mp4?Expires=1771215000&Signature=INyh7On7WAnjDXTAKA4ghik5QzwyUANmRTqCzRKW0AkUu7s8RTeLZPd6w6TYkunFhdErsssozXrN~gxtBn1uvc9qu9aLVbeHckz-UQl0hclc5Y9-5fR4yYPEpl0qFhWCKPjKgYE2KhertPSI8hau4Gb5N2wozXsO5~pEAf~IKlu7Eqj8N7c1f-9rCGehDQy4-GwfwJLK-cJBGhDTgtMZCEtlcdQK5y2ePdw10z-fK6XEnMQ3YqMRJW7-ZPJeU3zYMTH~Rp5sE7DxxZJnp6Ru8BguNH2IxKVzQCdwcErBCEQ-Rc2mcpnCtyGBbfwaHe3UwXR7z1gT8D7ikBiVMzUO6A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Acton","date","2025-08-27T12:53:29Z","article","The Town of Acton Finance Committee set a joint meeting with the school committee and select board and heard brief operational updates before adjourning by unanimous roll call.

Committee chair Scott confirmed a joint meeting (the “scribe board” meeting) with the Acton‑Boxborough School Committee and the Select Board for September 3 at 7 p.m. in the Administration Building on Charter Road. The meeting was described as an opportunity for “where the schools are now” with all parties present.

Town Manager John Manjari and other committee members reported several near‑term items: the health insurance trust has signaled a material increase in retiree insurance costs (discussed at the Select Board meeting), with a figure cited in committee discussion of about a 40% increase for retirees; broker Gallagher is working to mitigate the impact and the town expects some offsetting inflows. The DPW building committee is preparing four scenarios and cost estimates, with those estimates expected this week and presentation planned for early September.

Committee business also included scheduling and procedural items: the committee deferred approval of meeting minutes to the next meeting and decided to begin a point‑of‑view discussion at the next session. Scott asked members to assume they will attend unless they notified him otherwise for quorum planning.

A motion to adjourn was made, seconded and approved by roll call. The recorded votes were: Greg — aye; Steve — aye; Alex — aye; Jason — aye; Chrissy — aye; Roland — aye; Durant — aye. The chair declared the finance committee adjourned.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Acton Finance Committee Meeting - August 26th, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Finance Committee set a joint meeting with school and select board representatives for Sept. 3, heard that retiree health insurance faces a substantial increase, received notice of DPW facility scenario cost estimates and adjourned by unanimous roll call.","taxTitle","Town of Acton, Middlesex County, Massachusetts","taxId",56888,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6480499,"Acton finance committee interns present summer research on demographics, housing and fiscal impacts",2800,155000,2955000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5681166-878589429baf4ab6b24363fad5bab934&start=155&end=2955","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5681166-878589429baf4ab6b24363fad5bab934/thumbnail_155000.jpg","/articles/6480499/Town-of-Acton/Middlesex-County/Massachusetts/Acton-finance-committee-interns-present-summer-research-on-demographics-housing-and-fiscal-impacts","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6480499-3ec8d6906b31667685584647ebda8e66/orig.mp4?Expires=1771215000&Signature=AgCkPxNCrK0WWCel6GvvnJ7Cslh29zNMdvVJEcKPUyLN~Re7ZUHRSlU~6l~YHZlFPBvJy9MuhnCqO2orZVfUaigq81maxHPoCnjAWZ0kF0fxk9Mopq4xN2C5GKjgp59KYlgTYvcMcV3mqkPAAgT0iiKhOG08m4oBr6P3HlCYt97WKE5Fwpy2nLLPI1cqg7wRm8Ir~IOeNhTjGHKew~kM74DVQ7nOxLkBQGJWuXMWaeX56c7cCaUk-Xl3nu57aNSxeommGaC8qd3JGVcZHlgqP33j-u~xw50diCC23dmdY8YjDCIdevSjIO9iit4NVTZOa9FGOmPQrFWMsb1NE2RyUA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At a meeting of the Town of Acton Finance Committee, four summer interns delivered independent research presentations on how recent demographic and regional trends could affect the town budget, school enrollment and local businesses.

The interns — Anvi (UMass Lowell), Evan Andrews (Fairfield University), Peter Maxwell (Colby College) and Steven Starr (University of Massachusetts Amherst) — each analyzed local data and offered findings and policy options for committee members to consider. The presentations covered: an apparent COVID‑era birth spike and its projected cost to schools; a proposal for additional 55+ housing modeled on a development in Boxborough; trends tied to remote work and rising housing prices; and potential commercial, sewer and traffic impacts from the proposed MCI Concord redevelopment across the town line in Concord.

Anvi, a UMass Lowell rising sophomore, examined NESDEC birth and enrollment estimates and said the COVID birth year (2020) shows higher enrollment relative to other years. She calculated an average excess of 22 students attributable to the COVID year, and used a per‑pupil cost of $22,500 to estimate an annual operating impact of roughly $495,000. “Based on the data, the COVID year does have an impact on enrollment, and there is a spike in enrollment,” Anvi said. She described that spike as equivalent, in one comparison, to a capital project of about $4.4 million.

Evan Andrews presented town revenue and expenditure patterns and proposed encouraging additional 55+ (active adult) housing. He said property tax is the town’s largest revenue source and education is its largest expense, and he estimated the school cost at about $22,000 per student per year. Using the Enclave in Boxborough as a model, Evan projected per‑unit tax revenue and argued an active‑adult community could generate net revenue when compared with family housing, while freeing single‑family houses for younger families. Committee members asked about backfill (whether vacated family homes would refill with families) and the importance of modeling fixed vs. variable municipal costs; Evan said he had not calculated a breakeven with backfill assumed.

Peter Maxwell focused on remote‑work effects, showing a drop in the town’s 35‑year‑old cohort and a marked increase in the 65+ cohort. He noted K–12 enrollment trends showing a long‑running decline and cited a current enrollment figure near 4,900 students. Peter said the median house price in Acton is approaching about $900,000, a trend that can discourage young families from moving in.

Steven Starr examined the potential regional effects of MCI Concord redevelopment. He compared a possible mixed‑use redevelopment to Maynard Crossing, flagged the risk that a new Concord shopping center could draw retail customers away from Acton, and highlighted infrastructure differences: he cited town sewer capacity estimates of about 10% for Acton and roughly 35% for Concord. Starr also referenced traffic concerns at the Concord Rotary and said the Strategic Economic Development Action Plan did not reflect a possible MCI Concord redevelopment; he urged the committee to factor that prospect into future town planning.

Committee members and audience participants questioned assumptions and requested additional analysis. Questions included whether NESDEC data combined Acton and Boxborough, whether class sizes had changed, how municipal fixed costs versus variable costs would affect per‑resident calculations, and what the fiscal breakeven would be if seniors’ downsizing produced backfill by families moving into vacated single‑family homes. Scott, the committee chair, and other members praised the interns’ effort and discussed how the committee might refine data access and guidance if the program continues.

The presentations prompted discussion of potential next steps — including further data validation, modeling of fixed vs. variable costs, and consideration of backfill dynamics in housing proposals — but produced no formal committee votes or directives.

The interns’ research gave committee members a range of data points and scenarios to consider while preparing budget forecasts and town planning work later this year.","Four college interns summarized summer projects for the Town of Acton Finance Committee, reporting a possible post‑COVID enrollment spike, shifting age cohorts, housing‑market effects and regional development risks that could affect school budgets, tax revenue and local services.","actionData","errors"]

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Acton Finance Committee schedules joint schools meeting, hears insurance and DPW updates and adjourns

Acton finance committee interns present summer research on demographics, housing and fiscal impacts