MCI Concord advisory board asks town meeting for $250,000 to keep planning and wastewater options available

The MCI Concord advisory board asked town meeting to appropriate $250,000 from free cash to support feasibility work for the former MCI property, including further study of the site’s wastewater treatment plant and continued community outreach.

Mark Howell, the Select Board’s representative on the MCI Concord advisory board, told the Finance Committee the request would give the town flexible local funds to use alongside state earmarks and American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for planning, due diligence, legal review and participation in traffic and wastewater design work as redevelopment proceeds.

“How important is the wastewater treatment plant?” asked several committee members and residents. Alan Cathcart, director of Concord Public Works, said the town is evaluating the plant’s condition and capacity, and that acquiring or interconnecting the plant could affect Concord’s wastewater capacity and future development. “We’re trying to get creative with potentially acquiring this facility only if it provides an advantage to the Town of Concord,” Cathcart said.

Howell explained the town had already received state earmarks totaling $725,000 for MCI planning (two line items of $475,000 and $250,000) and that $285,000 of those funds had been used for wastewater treatment plant analysis; $40,000 remained as a contingency. He said the state funds must be spent by June 30, 2025, and that the town has requested a carryover or new earmark in the FY26 state budget but that outcome was uncertain. The advisory board and town manager have committed $100,000 in ARPA funds to zoning work; those ARPA funds must be spent by Dec. 31, 2026.

Public questions and committee members focused on how the $250,000 would be spent. Howell and advisory-board members said the funds would be used for additional outreach, further wastewater planning and interconnection design work, traffic studies to inform a MassDOT rotary redesign, legal support on draft state RFP language, and due-diligence assessments for any buildings the town might seek to acquire or reuse. The advisory board said these expenditures would be prioritized once the consultant’s economic analysis (due in June) identified likely redevelopment scenarios.

During public comment, advocates urged voters to support the appropriation to preserve the town’s ability to shape redevelopment; others asked for clearer accounting and specificity on planned studies. The Finance Committee moved to recommend affirmative action on Article 33; after discussion the committee approved the recommendation with one recorded opposing vote.

If approved at town meeting, the appropriation would give Concord discretionary funds to continue outreach and technical work as state-led planning and procurement for the MCI site moves forward. Town officials cautioned that larger capital investments or acquisitions would require additional, separate town meeting approvals.