Residents challenge Select Board use of Local Options funds for EMS trailer

Several Ludlow residents pressed the Select Board on June 1 over the use of 1% Local Options tax funds to pay for a temporary EMS trailer, saying they understood the revenue to be reserved for dam maintenance following a 2021 Army Corps of Engineers study.

At the start of public comment, resident Lynn Baldwin said the Board had previously told voters those funds would be “set aside for a fund to maintain the dams” and added she "has lost confidence" that the funds will be protected. Fred Bocko said the trailer’s placement may be illegal because of proximity to two bodies of water and close to the road center and asked whether the Select Board could authorize the expenditure without voter input.

Select Board members responded that the funds will be used for dams and fire trucks and that the board has authority to disburse the Local Options funds. Scott Baitz said the money "will be used for the dams and fire trucks," and Justin Hyjek described the temporary housing decision as part of earlier remediation planning and budget votes. Penny Wu said voters approved operational expenses and the articles presented for FY2027 and that future expenditures have been discussed; she said prior meeting materials listed potential projects.

The board agreed to place the Local Options funding use and the trailer location on an upcoming agenda to allow public comment and further clarification. No formal vote on changing the funding source was taken at the June 1 meeting.

The Select Board’s next regular meeting (July 6, 2026) was listed as an opportunity for follow-up; the board also committed to publishing additional information in future packets to clarify the Local Options fund balance and prior disclosures to voters.