Wayland Select Board delays debt exclusion vote on high school wastewater project

WAYLAND — March 2, 2026 — Wayland Select Board defers debt exclusion vote on $2 million high school wastewater fix. Chair Carol B. Martin told the board Monday she was "uncomfortable with a debt exclusion" for the Title 5 replacement system and asked Finance Director Brian Keveney to return March 9 with alternatives, citing the roughly $200,000 in annual debt service against $120,000 the town already spends pumping and hauling. Town Engineer Abby Charest said MassDEP has been "very generous" in tolerating the current arrangement but does not consider it a long-term solution; the new design replaces an earlier $5.5 million reconstruction plan. Town Manager Michael McCall had asked the board to pair the project with a $2.5 million baseball fields renovation for an aggregate $4.5 million exclusion. The board faces a March 23 deadline to place a ballot question. Separately, members voted 5-0 to appoint Newton constable Jeffrey Stilton and 5-0 to amend the Millennium Fund home rule petition without a donation cap.