Select Board moves to keep CEO status in revised town manager act

WAYLAND -- October 28, 2019, Wayland Select Board signals major rewrite of town manager act before November forum. At an Oct. 28 working session, the board reached informal consensus with town counsel Carolyn to strip "chief executive officer" from the town manager section of the draft Special Act and instead state explicitly that the Select Board "shall be the chief executive officers of the town." Chair Lee, citing feedback from 15 boards and six community forums, said "vesting so much power in one individual" was the wrong direction. Counsel will deliver a revised draft by Nov. 1, with a community forum tentatively set for Nov. 21. In regular session, the board voted 5-0 to appoint Klaus Shigley to the Audit Committee, and Town Administrator Louise Miller said the town has settled on a $6.5 million bond anticipation note. Miller also reported the Oxbow Meadows field will not reach substantial completion until May 2020 after inspectors found saturated turf and missing plantings.