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Foxborough Select Board interviews Harrington Heap to serve as town counsel; firm flags MBTA uncertainty and billing flexibility
Summary
At a June 11 Select Board interview, Harrington Heap presented a three-attorney team led by Chris Brown as a candidate for Foxborough town counsel, emphasizing municipal, land‑use and labor experience, while warning that MBTA Communities Act enforcement remains uncertain and recommending flexible billing and conflict processes.
The Foxborough Select Board interviewed Harrington Heap on June 11 as part of a search for the town’s next town counsel. The firm’s three-attorney team — Chris Brown (proposed lead attorney), Chris Heap (land‑use lead) and Tom Harrington (partner) — outlined a practice built around municipal law, land‑use work and labor and employment matters, and said they would assign Brown as the Foxborough point person.
Why it matters: Foxborough is weighing legal support as it faces near‑term challenges including how to respond to the MBTA Communities Act, upcoming municipal contracts and the needs of a newly appointed town manager. The town counsel role would advise boards and staff on open‑meeting and public‑records obligations, zoning and permitting, labor negotiations and litigation exposure.
Brown told the board he has practiced for about 19 years, roughly 14 of them in municipal law, and described hands‑on work drafting charters, bylaws and ordinances and advising on procurement and construction litigation. "You should be able to trust what I tell you," Brown said, describing a 24‑hour acknowledgement policy for client inquiries and an emphasis on being available for emergency issues such as a water main break.
Chris Heap said he joined the firm in 2005 and currently serves as Town Counsel in Needham, where he leads the firm’s land‑use practice and handles zoning, subdivision and enforcement matters. "We want to make sure the decision is defensible if it’s appealed," Heap said, describing the firm’s work preparing local boards for hearings and potential appeals to Land Court or Superior Court.
Tom Harrington described the firm as ‘‘not too big and not too small,’’ noting roughly a dozen attorneys serving about 15 municipal clients. He said that structure lets the firm provide both generalist municipal advice and access to specialists — for example, procurement counsel or wetlands expertise — while maintaining consistent primary contacts.
The attorneys spent substantial time on the MBTA Communities Act, telling the board that enforcement and consequences for towns that do not adopt MBTA‑compliant zoning remain unsettled. "The Attorney General has initiated litigation against towns that voted down MBTA zoning," Brown said, and Harrington added that because the litigation is on a briefing schedule the effect on other towns remains unclear. The firm advised the board that options include leaving current bylaws in place, reintroducing compliant zoning, or weighing the potential loss of some state grant eligibility depending on how the Attorney General and courts proceed.
The team also described experience handling alcohol licensing, license‑to‑carry appeals, collective bargaining and civil‑service matters, and negotiating development‑related agreements such as TIF/PILOT deals and other arrangements involving large employers or controversial facilities.
On conflicts of interest, the attorneys said they regularly check for overlapping town representations, notify clients early and will recuse themselves from matters where two client towns are at odds, offering to help identify alternate counsel when necessary.
On billing, the firm discussed retainers and hourly models and said retainers can be difficult to size for municipal clients because service needs vary year to year. "We will never put you in a bad financial position," Brown said, offering flexibility to structure rates or work within a town’s budget while maintaining open communication.
The Select Board members who conducted the interview — Chair Stephanie Macwan, Vice Chair Bill Yuka and member Mark Elman — told the applicants that top near‑term priorities include navigating MBTA responses, handling upcoming municipal contracts and helping the new town manager get up to speed. The board said it would interview two more firms and deliberate at its next meeting, with a likely decision expected the following Tuesday.
Next steps: The Select Board will continue interviews with other firms, deliberate at its next meeting and is expected to announce its selection at that meeting. Harrington Heap was invited to follow up during the interim with any clarifying questions about its proposal.
