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Select Board recommends multiple warrant articles, approves Halloween parade and sewer map changes
Summary
At its Oct. 8 meeting the Foxborough Select Board recommended approval of a bundle of Special Town Meeting warrant articles — including FY25 supplemental capital requests, increases to a police/fire revolving fund, sewer service area expansions and zoning map changes — and approved the Halloween parade permit. Several items were recommended subject to DPW/planning sign-off; final votes occur at Town Meeting.
The Foxborough Select Board on Oct. 8 recommended approval of a slate of Special Town Meeting warrant articles and approved an application to use the public way for the town’s Halloween parade on Oct. 26.
The board voted to recommend Article 1, a supplemental FY25 capital package intended to retire existing lease obligations and pay down shorter-term capital now that free cash has been certified. The items described by staff include payoff of body cameras and tasers, a grant match for SCBA equipment, replacement of a fire engine/ambulance and partial funding for a municipal tractor. The motion to recommend Article 1 passed with the board’s support.
The board also recommended Article 2 to increase the annual spending limit for the police and fire apparatus revolving fund from the current $200,000 to $400,000 to accommodate higher detail and equipment rates. Articles 3 and 4 — a $350,000 transfer into a Fire Stabilization Fund and a simultaneous partial transfer back into the fire budget for parts and mechanic support — were recommended to provide operating funding for repair work and to address constraints caused by performing repairs for other communities.
On land-use and infrastructure items, the board recommended Article 8 to rezone parcels at 69 and 75 Central Street from R15 to General Business and to extend the Foxborough Center overlay, a change staff said would broaden future reuse options for the town-owned senior-center property. The board also recommended Article 10 to amend the sewer service area map to add multiple Main Street parcels and allow sewer service to reach 76 Main Street (identified as a future community center); DPW staff said the town has capacity but precise capacity figures were not provided in the meeting transcript.
Other warrant recommendations included Article 11 to change the purpose and permit disposition of a small town-owned parcel behind 34 School Street, Article 12 to grant an easement to National Grid at 70 Elm Street for underground electrical service, and Articles 13–14 to accept Peterson Lane and a second London Estates way as public ways subject to final DPW/planning approval.
The board approved the Halloween parade use-of-public-way application (route from Town Hall up Liberty and Central to the Common, Oct. 26 from 2:30–4:00 p.m.) and discussed related community events including a pumpkin patch donation.
“We have the free cash; let’s pay these off,” the chair said during the capital-budget discussion, explaining the rationale for retiring lease obligations while reserves are available.
These are recommendations to Town Meeting; final approvals will be decided at the Special Town Meeting scheduled for Nov. 18, 2024. Several planning or DPW conditions were noted for street acceptances and other items, and the board asked staff to ensure required documentation and final approvals are in place before town meeting votes.
Ending: The board completed recommendations on the presented warrant articles and moved on to manager updates and consent items ahead of the Nov. 18 Special Town Meeting.
