Boxborough Morning Brief, Oct. 24: Roof repair estimate nearly doubles to $8M

From Boxborough News

• Select board sets new $35 abatement fee The Select Board replaced a variable abutters-list fee with a flat rate, a change Town Assessor Lynda Cajka said was meant to improve efficiency rather than raise revenue. The board also appointed Diane Ford to the Council on Aging and approved the Nov. 3 State Election Warrant.Boxborough News
• Conservation panel closes Davidson Road hearing The Boxborough Conservation Commission closed a public hearing on a Notice of Intent for development at 244 Davidson Road after revised plans incorporated Board of Health input on septic design and grading, with an order of conditions due at the panel's Oct. 21 meeting.Boxborough News
• School roof repair estimate balloons to $8M Acton and Boxborough officials disclosed that a high school roof and HVAC replacement estimate nearly doubled to about $8 million, raising talk of a debt exclusion or phased work and a projected 8.9 percent tax levy increase for fiscal 2028.Boxborough News
• Planning Board shortens data center moratorium The Boxborough Planning Board voted to shorten its proposed data center moratorium after legal counsel warned the original 2028 deadline was a "point of potential critical failure" that could let Town Meeting strike the provision and jeopardize the whole bylaw.Boxborough News
• Planning Board names town center zoning top goal The Boxborough Planning Board began ranking zoning priorities, naming a town center overhaul its top goal after comparing the master plan with a 2020 zoning audit. Members disputed whether the board missed a chance to rezone Hill Road land for moderate-income housing.Boxborough News
• Conservation panel OKs PFAS waterline fixes Boxborough's Conservation Commission took up waterline connections letting two condo complexes abandon PFAS-contaminated wells for Littleton water, as engineers said onsite treatment wouldn't fit either building. The panel also flagged undisclosed tree removal at a Davidson Road septic project, prompting calls for a disclosure policy.Boxborough News
• Fire panel drops geothermal heating option The Fire Station Building Committee weighed dropping a ground-source geothermal system for Boxborough's new fire station after the cost gap against a conventional heat pump grew to about $2.2 million, more than double an earlier estimate. Resident Cindy Markowitz urged weighing equipment lifespan instead.Boxborough News
• Fire panel ends further geothermal study The Fire Station Building Committee considered halting further study of a ground-source geothermal system for the new station after the cost gap reached $2.2 million, up from an earlier $1.2 million estimate. Vice Chair Mac Reid said the system would add to a costly program.Boxborough News
• Voter registration deadline is today Boxborough announced that Saturday, Oct. 24, is the last day to register to vote in the Nov. 3 state election, either online by midnight or in person at Town Hall by 5 p.m.Boxborough News

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