Wayland Board of Public Works raises transfer station fees, votes to allow summer water bans

WAYLAND — April 24, 2024 — Wayland Board of Public Works votes to raise transfer station sticker fees and authorize summer water bans. The board voted unanimously April 24 to set the full-year transfer station sticker at $185, up from $165, and approved a revised fee schedule including large bags at $15 and small bags at $9 per pack of five and a new $10 credit card surcharge on sticker purchases, projecting a roughly $20,000 operating loss even with the increases against a $151,000 deficit target. The board also approved two 5-0 votes authorizing DPW Director Tom Holder and Water Superintendent Don Uvegis to impose outdoor watering restrictions and, if necessary, declare a water supply conservation emergency under Chapter 190 — citing Baldwin Pond operating at half its 1.5 million-gallon-per-day capacity due to membrane fouling and the continued unavailability of the town's emergency MWRA connection, stalled since September 2023 because Eversource has been unable to deliver three electrical transformers. The board authorized Town Manager Michael McCall to sign a letter to Eversource adding the governor's office and the MWRA as copy recipients. Financial consultant Matt Abrahams presented version 14 of a water rate model projecting a $1.7 million MWRA water purchase assessment entering the budget around fiscal 2030 and retained earnings trending toward zero without rate increases. Chair Clifford Lewis and member Sherry Greenbaum, both departing after the meeting, were thanked by Select Board liaison Carol Martin for their service.