Advisory subcommittee urges town to weigh municipal uses for MCI site, flags wastewater and DPW options

Committee members raised municipal uses for the former MCI property as a substantial consideration for master planning, pressing the town to state near-term priorities so consultants can include municipal scenarios in their work.

A subcommittee member said the wastewater treatment plant has been discussed as a municipal use and that figures “like $25,000,000” have been mentioned in prior conversations as a possible scale for wastewater-related work; members asked for more formal updates from town staff on whether the town plans to acquire, improve, or replace that facility. The group also proposed considering relocation of the Department of Public Works to part of the MCI site, noting the site’s size and peripheral location could make it a cost-effective municipal location.

Members described an ongoing land-use matrix exercise the select board has requested that inventories municipal facilities and prioritizes public-safety and public-works needs; they urged the town manager and facilities staff to provide prioritized needs so that the consultant’s scenario development can reflect municipal requirements. A suggestion was made to commission appraisals of high-value town sites (e.g., existing public-works and public-safety parcels) to inform possible land swaps or cost-offsets if municipal facilities are sited at MCI.

Committee members asked for clearer near-term direction: if the town intends to pursue municipal uses, that decision should be integrated into consultant scenarios; if municipal use is ruled out, the subcommittee asked to cross it off the work plan. Members volunteered to speak at select board meetings or to raise the topic as residents if needed to raise visibility.

The RFP text was noted to request that consultants "work with town staff to understand municipal building needs" and consider them in scenario work, but the RFP does not require municipal-use scenarios as a hard requirement. The committee asked that municipal priorities be clarified to ensure they are included where appropriate.

The committee did not make a formal decision about acquiring municipal assets at this meeting; they requested staff follow-up and progress reports so the group can track whether a go/no-go municipal decision will be necessary within about a year.