Town yard proposal detailed

Rich Feldman, chairman of the Town Yard Task Force, presented details of the proposed purchase of a site for a new town yard to a joint meeting of the Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee on Monday. Feldman said the town has a draft purchase and sale agreement with the Gutierrez Co. of Burlington for 5 Campanelli Drive, which he said has been appraised at over $4 million. However, he said, the task force has been able to negotiate a price of around $3.5 million. The existing town yard, built in 1965 on 3 acres on Lewis Street, is too small to house the town’s current maintenance operations and has structural problems that have gobbled up $100,000 in emergency repairs in the last two years, Feldman said. The town yard project, including purchase of the new site and construction of a new facility, will cost an estimated $17.8 million. The task force will decide whether to present just the proposed site purchase or the entire project to Town Meeting on April 30 for consideration, and if it is approved, a townwide vote on a temporary tax hike to fund it would take place sometime in June, Feldman said. The task force will make additional presentations to other town boards and committees. Selectman Alexander J. Vispoli also encouraged the task force to hold some community forums before Town Meeting. - Katheleen Conti