The Hubbardston Select Board on Jan. 21 voted to approve the order of taking and related procedural steps for the Williamsville Road project, a MassDOT right-of-way acquisition the town said is wholly grant-funded.

Why it matters: Approving the order of taking and authorizing recordation are legal steps that allow the town to accept easements and temporary construction rights that the state and project will use for a road project. Town staff said the work is grant-funded and the select board’s approvals were procedural steps needed to move the project toward bidding.

What the board approved: The board approved three related motions presented by town staff and MassDOT: (1) an order of taking for parcels identified in project materials, including parcels labeled TE-1 (779 square feet), TE-2 (101,676 square feet) and PUE-1 (317 square feet); (2) a motion expressing the board’s intent to alter the Williamsville Road layout and to send the proposed alteration to the planning board for recommendation; and (3) authorization for the town administrator to record the order of taking at the Worcester County Register of Deeds.

MassDOT and staff said the project is fully grant-funded. Rosemary Scribe of MassDOT’s right-of-way/community compliance unit said notices of taking will be sent to affected property owners after final recording, and that the temporary construction easements being acquired are standard five-year easements for construction, though project completion could occur sooner. Staff noted that two property owners had received appraisal offers and that town staff had maintained a contact log while negotiating with those landowners.

Motion and vote: A motion to approve the documents as read was moved and seconded; the select board took a voice vote — “All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries.” The board directed the town administrator to take necessary actions to record the order of taking and proceed with notices.

Clarifying details from the meeting: Town staff said appraisal compensation offers discussed in the meeting were “700 and 500 respectively” for two lots (as presented in materials in the packet); staff also described an appraisal fee of about $5,000 and an anticipated town upfront cost of roughly $1,600 related to administrative processing, which staff described as the town’s small share of processing a roughly $5,000,000 grant-funded project.

Next steps: After recordation at the Worcester County Register of Deeds, notices of taking will be mailed to property owners and any mortgagees identified in title work; staff said mortgagee sign-off can complicate voluntary donations or transfers and is being tracked through title work.