Wayland Finance Committee lays out compressed five-week warrant review schedule

WAYLAND -- December 16, 2024, Wayland Finance Committee braces for $1.4M school gap, $34M water decision and a CPA hike. Meeting Dec. 16, members reviewed Town Administrator Brian Keveney's fiscal 2026 forecast, 2.48 percent for town departments, 4.32 percent for schools, and acknowledged the schools cannot absorb a new teachers' contract and full-day kindergarten within that target. Member Phil urged using a projected $10 million free-cash balance to seed the reserve fund rather than rush an override, calling it the year to act because "all that's really happening here is people are trying to do things to not have to vote for overrides." The Board of Public Works has settled on a $34 million hybrid MWRA-plus-Happy Hollow water plan, headed to the spring 2026 annual town meeting, with $1.3 million in engineering costs flowing through the fiscal 2026 capital budget. The committee unanimously approved Dec. 2 minutes and set its article workshop for Jan. 21.