Littleton Select Board Opens Special Town Meeting Warrant, Debates Long Lake Docks and Charter

Select Board · Meeting of August 10, 2026

Littleton's Select Board voted 4-0 to open the warrant for an October 27, 2026 Special Town Meeting and directed town staff to inspect and remove the most dangerous of eight unpermitted docks on a town-owned conservation parcel along Long Lake. In a joint session with the Conservation Commission, members heard that the existing docks violate both the Wetlands Protection Act and Chapter 91, and Town Counsel warned that the town's recreational-use-statute immunity is now at risk because the board is formally on notice of the docks' poor condition. The commission's straw-poll results showed majority support for the town acquiring a limited number of small public-access docks at an estimated cost of $25,000 to $30,000, with a canoe-and-kayak rack system to follow, but no formal vote was taken and the broader policy was continued to a later date.

On the town charter, Vice Chair Charles DeCoste favored a standalone special act to establish a Town Manager, while Member Karen Lee Morrison pushed for a full charter, saying "I will hold my nose" to strip out the more controversial appointed-board provisions if necessary; the board assigned Clerk Mark Rambacher and Morrison to lead the charter redline process ahead of the September 11 warrant-closing deadline. The board also unanimously approved the September 1 primary election warrant and reappointed Edward Collins to the Clean Lakes Committee through June 30, 2028.

In the full story:

• Background and stakes
• The question before the body
• Substantive content
• The deliberation
• Procedural steps and outcome
• Implications and what is next
• The complete report — 3,630 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of August 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.