Select Board scales back Route 20 engineering request to $200,000

WAYLAND -- January 16, 2024, Wayland Select Board scales back Route 20 engineering article to $200,000 in 3-2 vote. The board on Tuesday inserted four articles into the 2024 annual town meeting warrant, with the Route 20 corridor design request drawing the only divided vote after member Thomas J. Fay proposed cutting the appropriation from $600,000 to $200,000. Members Adam Gutbezahl and Carol B. Martin voted no, with Gutbezahl arguing the article would let departments "circumvent the town manager" and Martin saying the project belongs in fiscal 2026 or later. DPW Director Tom Holder said the reduced figure could still attract qualified firms but warned partial funding carries risk. The board voted 5-0 to insert a special education stabilization fund article, the MBTA Communities multifamily zoning article, and a reaffirmation of the home rule petition for remote town meeting participation first passed in 2021. Town Manager Michael McCall said the Route 20 work would be funded through borrowing.