Residents press Select Board for answers after MassTrails grant submission

Several Westborough residents used the public comment period to press the Select Board for more transparency and accountability after town staff submitted a MassTrails grant application for a design study related to the Beewalt (BWALT) project.

Joanne Arimini, of 7 Meadow Road, told the board she was concerned that planning boards and committees had not been informed after a January 16 discussion and asked whether written communication had been sent to the planning board about the action items from that meeting. “Given this project is plagued with a lack of transparency and communication and the planning board was not in attendance, I would like to know if written communication has been sent to the planning board,” Arimini said. She also urged the board to correct a reported submission that she said requested a 75% design grant for Section 2 and suggested the select board chair send a letter to MassTrails to amend the application.

Kevin Barry of Indian Pond Road expanded on those concerns and flagged the grant amount and cost changes. Barry said the design study was presented in an earlier capital plan at $400,000 but that the MassTrails application lists $625,000. “We’re deeply concerned about the MassTrails grant that has not been fully disclosed or presented to the appropriate boards and committees, nor has the increase in cost been explained,” Barry said, and asked the board to review financial management of the project.

Board members responded that there is no formal requirement that staff seek prior approval to apply for grants and that the town typically notifies committees after grant awards are received. One board member, identified in the transcript as Christie, said: “We typically come to the appropriate committees once we receive the grant,” and acknowledged that board members were understandably surprised that they had not heard about the application before it was submitted.

Arimini also raised a personnel complaint involving an Active Transportation and Safety Committee (ATSC) member, accusing that person of violating the town’s anti‑discrimination and harassment policy and of continuing behavior town officials had asked him to stop. She asked that the member be removed from the ATSC. The board did not take immediate action on that allegation during the meeting; staff and the Select Board indicated the complaint would be handled through the town’s established policies and processes.

Why it matters: Residents say the size and timing of the grant — and a sizeable increase from earlier estimates — affect capital planning and public trust. The board’s framing that grant applications need not be authorized in advance highlights a gap between residents’ expectations and typical municipal grant practice.

What’s next: Board members asked residents who offered specific documents to submit them to the record. The board did not vote on any change to the grant submission during this meeting; residents asked that the Select Board follow up with written notices to affected committees and consider whether any corrective correspondence to MassTrails is necessary.