Blackstone capital committee debates road funding transparency, reviews townwide five-year plan

The Town of Blackstone Capital Outlay Committee met Feb. 18 to review a draft five-year capital plan and spent the bulk of the meeting debating how the town handles annual road funding and how much visibility the committee should have over year-to-year road projects.

The committee’s most substantive debate concerned an annual operating line for road work (typically about $300,000) versus separate warrant articles for larger road projects (commonly $500,000). Committee member Jeff Silverstein said he “holds the unpopular opinion that the allocations should be itemized” and argued that “every road project that exceeds a certain amount should be brought before this committee and reviewed just like any other capital project.”

Countering that view, other members and town officials warned that strict itemization could limit the DPW’s ability to respond to changing conditions and to reallocate savings. One participant said, “I’m not gonna handcuff the superintendent, the DPW, to certain [projects] because that money goes a long way,” arguing that flexibility lets the superintendent address unexpected needs and capture cost savings.

Why it matters: the committee is responsible for a rolling five-year capital forecast used to plan borrowing and large expenditures. How the town…