Wayland Board of Public Works Approves $15,812 Housing Authority Water Abatement

WAYLAND — May 21, 2024 — Wayland Board of Public Works approves $15,812 water bill abatement and begins FY25 rate-setting process. The board, meeting remotely on May 21, unanimously elected Michael Wegerbauer as chair and George Vigis as vice chair, seated two new members — Michael Spelman and Judy Ling — and approved a water bill abatement of $15,812.85 for the Wayland Housing Authority, whose Building 6 recorded an anomalous usage spike in fall 2023; the revised figure applied Tier 1 rates rather than the full four-tier schedule, reducing the abatement from an earlier estimate of roughly $22,900. Financial consultant Matt Abrahams of the Abrahams Group walked the board through a 41-tab Excel rate model showing the water enterprise fund on track to lose approximately $325,000 in FY25 under flat rates, with scenarios tested at 2 percent to 6 percent increases suggesting a roughly 6 percent hike would bring revenue close to the $4.73 million Town Meeting-approved budget. The board also noted a projected MWRA operating assessment of $1.8 million annually beginning in FY31 under a hybrid supply model — rising to $3.6 million if the town opts for 100 percent MWRA water — against a current total budget just under $5 million.