Concord oversight committee reviews land‑matrix sites and confirms legal costs fall under town manager budget

A Town of Concord oversight committee meeting reviewed a draft letter regarding the committee’s work, outlined the scope of a new Land Matrix Committee that will evaluate multiple municipal properties and confirmed that legal expenses for forthcoming negotiations will be covered in the town manager’s general legal budget.

The committee discussed a draft letter, with members saying they plan to approve the wording after making administrative edits such as adding professional titles and expanding the copied recipients. "We have a draft letter, and we're going to approve the wording of that letter," said Terry, a Select Board member serving as the committee liaison.

The nut of the discussion was the Land Matrix Committee’s charge, which the Select Board will consider at its next meeting. The committee will evaluate sites including 2229 Main Street, PB School, MCI, Kays Road and the Public Safety Building and will report back with recommendations about possible reuses. "The Land Matrix Committee is gonna look at all the pros and cons and needs of all of these...and come back to the select board with recommendation," Terry said, describing potential uses such as moving Public Works, adding town offices at 2229 Main Street or placing affordable housing on Kays Road.

Committee members raised staff concerns about potential relocations. One member said they had heard Public Works employees worry about being required to work at the 2229 Main Street site; Terry said that report had been heard but that the committee had not reached any decisions on placement. "I have heard that. I don't know. I I've only heard that once before...I don't think we're there yet," Terry said.

Members also discussed scheduling and administrative items: the committee tentatively set recurring meeting dates on the third Friday of the month at 10:30 a.m. (March 21; no meeting in April; May 16; June 20; July 18; Aug. 15; Sept. 19) and agreed it is easier to post and cancel meetings than to add them later. Several members noted they may not be able to attend particular dates; one member said they will not be on the Select Board after June 2 and a new liaison will be assigned.

On legal funding, committee members asked whether money is set aside to cover legal work. Terry said the legal work related to future negotiations—"Mina and his team negotiating with the EPA," as Terry described it—will be covered by the town manager’s general legal expense line. Terry said the expense is "already included in the legal budget, but I don't have a number." A committee member asked whether the legal budget would change from fiscal year 25 to the proposed fiscal year 26; a participant described the proposed amount as "still $4.55" but did not specify units or whether that figure is thousands, millions or a shorthand. The committee agreed the town manager should include expected legal needs for the project when finalizing next year’s budget.

Members described how prior technical work at the STARMET site and other cleanup-related efforts were funded: some work was paid by the town and some by grants, while the committee’s routine support has come through the Board of Health’s staff time. Terry noted town staff (including Melanie and her administrative assistant, Ebony) have provided support and that the oversight committee’s work generally does not require large legal expenditures.

The committee closed by confirming agenda procedures and room reservations and adjourning the meeting. "If not, I'd like to make a motion to call the meeting to close or adjourn," said a committee member; the motion was seconded and approved with an oral "aye."