Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Trash Collection topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents urge Select Board to fast‑track trash vendor signups to avoid extra costs and long town meeting
Summary
Public commenters asked the Select Board to reopen or accelerate the trash-collection decision and to permit residents to select automated bin sizes before a deadline to avoid additional costs and to limit town‑meeting length; board members agreed to consider placing the item back on a future agenda.
Several residents urged the Select Board during public comment Aug. 18 to reconsider the town’s timeline for deciding whether to switch to automated trash collection and to give residents time-limited opportunities to choose bin sizes in advance of implementation. Resident Liz Faria said postponing the decision until town meeting could add an estimated $45,000 to the 2026 budget if the town stayed manual through the winter, and she recommended the board open a sign-up window so residents can select automated cart sizes (for example, 95‑ or 65‑gallon carts) by Nov. 1; under her proposal, residents who do not select a size by that date would receive the default cart allocated by the vendor. Board members discussed whether the trash topic had been properly posted for discussion and whether it should be added to a future agenda; one member said the issue had been intended for a prior agenda but was not posted. The board did not take a final vote at the meeting but agreed there is interest in reconsidering the timetable and agreed to post the matter for a future meeting so the question can be debated formally with appropriate public notice.
