Wayne to hold special town meeting Jan. 21 to authorize $167,625 for Ladd Center court project

The Town of Wayne Select Board voted Jan. 7 to set a special town meeting for 6 p.m. Jan. 21 at the Ladd Center to ask voters to appropriate $167,625 from the town’s undesignated reserve fund to cover outstanding invoices and interest for the Ladd Center (Lab) recreation court project.

The warrant article, as moved by a board member and approved unanimously on the floor, would appropriate $167,625 with $163,700 to be reimbursed to the town under the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) project agreement dated Sept. 12, 2023, and up to $3,925 to cover interest that has accrued on late invoices.

The board said the town has already spent community-raised funds and town appropriations on the project and is awaiting reimbursement from the LWCF. Town staff described delays in the federal/state reimbursement system that have held up payment; the board said unpaid contractor invoices are accruing interest and recommended expedited voter authorization so the town can pay bills and seek reimbursement.

Officials described the financial picture in public comment and on a spreadsheet presented to the board: the community raised roughly $185,000 and the LWCF award is $163,700 toward a total project cost in the roughly $340,000 range. Town staff said the town has paid roughly $185,000 so far and that outstanding invoices total about $116,075 (numbers discussed during the meeting). The board and staff debated whether the warrant figure should be written as a not-to-exceed amount tied to the LWCF award; the final wording adopted by the board set the $167,625 figure (which combines the $163,700 LWCF reimbursement with an interest cap of $3,925).

Board and staff discussed interest calculations at length. A town official outlined two approaches: statutory default interest (which the official said would calculate to about $1,964.05 under a 20-day pay assumption at a statutory rate) and the contractor’s billed interest (which, depending on interpretation, yielded a higher amount). The board agreed to include an interest cap of $3,925 in the warrant article and directed staff to proceed with the special town meeting schedule and related administrative steps (posting, moderator arrangements).

The board also discussed logistics for the special town meeting: a moderator may need to be elected as an initial procedural item, votes must be in-person on the floor (no remote voting for the special town meeting), and postings will appear at the post office, town office/store and online. The board recorded the motion to set the warrant and then voted, with the clerk noting “All in favor.”

The LWCF project agreement was referenced by staff as the source of the reimbursement; staff said the first expected reimbursement payment would be in the vicinity of $71,000 once federal/state processing completes. The board said it preferred to set the appropriate not-to-exceed figure now rather than delay and allow additional interest to accrue.

The board set the special town meeting for Jan. 21 at 6 p.m. at the Ladd Center, approved the warrant wording as read on the floor, and closed discussion. The motion carried with a voice vote of “All in favor.”

The board emphasized voters will decide at the special town meeting whether to authorize the appropriation and that, if the funding is approved, staff will issue payment to the contractor and submit reimbursement claims to LWCF as required by the project agreement.