Millis Finance Committee reviews preliminary fall town meeting articles including tree removal, flood-map fixes and gas meters

Finance and town staff reviewed a draft list of articles being prepared for the fall town meeting during the Sept. 24 Finance Committee session.

Town staff said the warrant will include recurring items such as unpaid bills and FY26 budgetary transfers and a set of capital and bylaw proposals. The packet distributed to the committee included the following items staff said could appear on the warrant:

- Funds for roads and sidewalk construction (amount to be set pending free cash estimates). - Funding for tree pruning and removal: staff told the committee they have seen a recent “spike” in resident requests to address dangerous or dying town trees and that the town typically funds this work from free cash; a committee member estimated $75,000 as a possible figure to consider, but staff said final amounts will depend on available free cash and the tree warden’s priorities. - A school building project: schedule under review; the town will invite school officials to present details at a future meeting. - Gas meters for the fire department (natural‑gas detectors) — staff placed a roughly $35,000 capital item on the list and said the town has an existing state earmark for the purchase; the earmark’s release remains uncertain and the town included the article as a fallback in case the earmark is not released. - Proposed changes to general bylaws, including procurement thresholds (Article 6) and updates to animal-control fines to align with state minimums. - A proposed local bylaw to limit commercial gas-powered leaf blower hours (focused on commercial operators, not residents) and to give enforcement authority to police for violations. - Zoning-related articles: revision of FEMA flood map references to match federal maps (staff said a few commercial parcels and some homes were affected and that appeals of the FEMA determinations are being explored), and tweaks to accessory dwelling unit (ADU) language to conform to the state Attorney General’s guidance. - OPEB (Other Post‑Employment Benefits) actuarial study (about $8,200) and a possible transfer into the OPEB trust (town typically budgets between $50,000 and $100,000 depending on free cash availability). - Addition of a previously omitted town-owned parcel to the list of properties the town may authorize for disposition at a future meeting; staff noted recent property sales from the spring warrant finalized only after several months of post‑town‑meeting work.

Staff said the warrant had not been finalized; the warrant closes on Monday, Sept. 29, and the committee should expect a draft for review. Several committee members asked that the tree warden and fire chief be invited to provide scoped cost estimates for the tree‑work and gas‑meter requests, respectively, so the committee can prioritize items based on free cash availability.

The committee did not take final votes on the articles during the Sept. 24 meeting; staff and board liaisons will return with itemized cost estimates and any state confirmations needed before the warrant is posted.