Board Votes to Fund Part-Time Communications Job
Select Board · Meeting of October 6, 2026
Stoneham Select Board funds a part-time communications hire by raiding the trash subsidy account. Nine business owners, including Magnus Liquors owner Tushar Patel, who said he's "losing almost $30,000 a month," blasted the town's parking permit program and downtown construction impacts during public comment. The board approved a new all-alcohol license 4-0 for Arancini at 316 Main Street, represented by attorney James Giuliano.
To address a communications gap flagged during last year's override, the board unanimously backed a part-time, roughly $28,528 position funded by shifting money out of the trash subsidy account rather than raising taxes, over Member Raymie Parker's objection that "the optic is that my trash fee... is now going to go up." The board also endorsed all 13 Town Meeting warrant articles, including nearly $989,000 in capital projects and a data center moratorium through July 2028, ahead of the October 19 Town Meeting.
In the full story:
- Substantive content and deliberation, article by article
- Who Was There
- Organizations And Documents Referenced
- The complete report — 3,852 words
Source: the Select Board meeting of October 6, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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