Select Board July 28: Purchase and Sale signed for East Milton Fire Station and other updates
The Select Board welcomed Curtis Ross, the new Appraisal Technician for the town of Milton Assessors office. He is excited to get started and the town is happy to have him on board.
Fire Department report
Fire Chief Chris Madden joined with a department update. His report included the trainings the department have participated in and also future trainings, current projects, current staffing issues, and capital improvements. In terms of current projects, he thanked the Select Board and the Fire Station Building Committee for all their hard work and dedication to the building and improvements to the towns fire stations.
East Milton Fire Station update
Correspondingly, The Select Board announced that they have signed a purchase-and-sale agreement to acquire land for the new East Milton fire station. The agreement is for the half an acre of land next to the St. Agatha’s rectory located on Adams Street. The agreed upon cost is $890,000. The February Town meeting approved the plan for the new East Milton fire station and the voters approved a temporary tax increase to pay for it. The deal is scheduled to close sometime in the fall.
Municipal Broadband Committee update
Next on the agenda was a presentation from the Municipal Broadband Committee regarding the take rate contract and a possible warrant article for submittal into the October Town meeting. If the town approves the proposal then the vendor says the work can begin. The Select Board moved to approve the proposal. The pandemic demonstrated the importance of networking for all, and the demand is increasing.
Finance Committee update
The report from the Finance Committee consisted of updates regarding the status of American Rescue Plan Act and CARES Act funds and current and future projects in which to discuss the allocation timeline. They would like to have community and resident involvement in the decision making process and need to move quickly as projects are stacking up.
Additional items of discussion
The proposal for Soofa signs in the business districts was approved. Soofa Signs are used to share information across the community, from upcoming events to emergency information in a way that no other platform can.
On Sunday, August 29th, the Town will host a free, drive-through COVID testing day, from 10am to 3pm, at the Department of Public Works (DPW) yard at 629 Randolph Avenue. Please click here for additional information.
The next meeting took take place on August 3.
If these are supposed to be informational on “updates” and “presentation” from the Select Board, they are woefully incomplete and thus contribute to the feeling ( justified or not) that town government is not fully transparent. We are citizens and taxpayers but that should involve more explanation of the issues being presented.
To the moderator, typo occurred in my email: correct is below. Jpg