At its Aug. 27 Select Board retreat, representatives of Templeton Community Television (TCTV) presented a business plan asking the board to consider a supplemental investment to stabilize and expand the station’s operations over five years.

The presentation outlined a projected $150,000 supplemental funding need spread across five years and described multiple revenue streams TCTV leaders say could reduce reliance on cable subscription fees, which have declined in recent years. The presenters showed a five‑year projection combining modest increases in sponsorship, paid services such as video production and digital conversions, new membership revenue from non‑cable households and potential income from digital signage and montachusett.tv advertising.

Why it matters: TCTV provides the town’s livestreams and meeting archives, public‑service announcements and local video programming used by residents and town departments. TCTV staff told the Select Board that continued subscriber declines are widening a structural funding gap and that a short‑term investment could enable the station to scale revenue sources and partner regionally to become financially sustainable.

What was proposed: The presenters described a funding plan with three parallel elements: (1) a supplemental town investment of $150,000 over five years to stabilize core meeting and public‑service coverage while new revenues ramp up; (2) a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Wachusett Business Incubator (WBI) to allow montachusett.tv to collect membership and advertising revenue and to manage ecommerce/transaction processing; and (3) expanded digital products (digital signage, montachusett.tv banner ads and a regional content/production arm) to generate earned income. The presenters said the MOU would include safeguards so outside funds could not be spent without town approval.

Board response and next steps: Select Board members asked for the business plan and said they would review the proposal and the MOU language. No formal vote or appropriation was requested or taken at the retreat; the presentation ended with an agreement to place the TCTV business plan and the proposed MOU on a future agenda for further review and decision.

Direct quote from the presenter: “I would like to make a proposal for an investment in our community,” the TCTV presenter said at the start of the slide deck, introducing the team and the plan.

Context and caveats: Presenters described an ongoing decline in cable subscriptions and said that cable subscriber fees historically funded most of TCTV’s operations. The plan relies on a combination of municipal support and private revenue that presenters said would take several years to reach scale; the station did not present a signed funding commitment from the town during the retreat. The proposal also includes options (enterprise fund / revolving account / nonprofit transition) that staff said would require additional legal and fiscal analysis before any change of structure.

What to watch for: The Select Board will decide whether to place a request for supplemental funding or to approve an MOU that would let TCTV collect and manage revenues on montachusett.tv. If the board asks staff to draft formal contract/MOU language, that document will be returned to the board for review before any funds change hands.