Wayland Select Board advances town manager special act in 4-1 vote

WAYLAND -- January 4, 2021, Wayland selectmen advance long-debated town manager special act to spring town meeting on a 4-1 vote. The Board of Selectmen voted Monday to submit the select board town manager special act to the 2021 annual town meeting warrant, with member Dave Watkins dissenting because the package did not include a red-lined version of how the existing town code would change. "I don't want to vote no for this," Watkins said, calling the omission a transparency gap. Chair Cherry Carlson said she had begun the red-line work last year but found it "so unwieldy" it would not help residents. The board separately voted 5-0 to submit six other articles, including a capital budget stabilization fund, community choice aggregation, Loker School solar, and a cost-of-living adjustment for non-union personnel. Members also appointed Steve Curtin to the Audit Committee through June 30, 2023, and renewed a Class 2 dealer license for Wayland Foreign Motors despite a failed septic at the leased site. Town Administrator Louise Miller reported 63 new COVID-19 cases between Dec. 24 and Dec. 31.