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Palmer council votes to acquire 1307 Park Street, approves $1.275 million appropriation for DPW site
Summary
After an executive session, the Palmer Town Council voted to take 1307 Park Street (assessor parcel 56‑93) by eminent domain and appropriate $1,275,000 from capital stabilization to acquire the property for municipal facilities, including a future DPW complex.
The Palmer Town Council on July 13 voted to acquire 1307 Park Street by eminent domain and appropriate $1,275,000 from the town’s capital stabilization fund to award damages and authorize acquisition for municipal facilities.
The chair read the resolution’s motion on the floor and the council moved and seconded the item after returning from executive session. The resolution directs the town manager to enter into an agreement for acquisition and to adopt an order of taking for the parcel identified as assessor’s Parcel 56‑93, with damages set at $1,275,000.
Brad (staff member) described the property as the site of a long‑standing capital need and said the purchase would provide a future Department of Public Works complex. "This will be our future DPW complex," Brad said, calling the appropriation "pennies on the dollar" compared with building new facilities and noting the funding comes from capital stabilization rather than a debt exclusion or override.
The council voted in favor of the resolution. The motion authorizes the town manager to complete the acquisition under terms the town manager finds in the town’s interests.
The council’s action follows an executive‑session negotiation process under Massachusetts General Law chapter 30A §21(6), which the chair said was necessary because an open meeting could have a detrimental effect on the public body’s negotiating position. The resolution and appropriation were presented in the form read at the meeting and recorded in the meeting packet.
Next steps include the town manager executing acquisition documents and the administrative processing of recording the taking and awarding damages at the Hampton County Registry of Deeds; the council did not specify a public timetable for closing during the session.
