Wayland Select Board Designates Civilian Traffic Controllers, Honors Camp Chickami Responders

Select Board · Meeting of September 8, 2026

Wayland Select Board honored Camp Chickami first responders and took steps to ease a traffic detail shortage at its September 8 meeting. The board voted 5-0 to commend members of the Wayland Police and Fire departments for their August 18 response to the fatal camp emergency, with named certificates going to individual first responders including Assistant Fire Chief Richard Ripley and Detective Sergeant Tyler Castagno. Acting Chief of Police Mark Hebert told the board the department had more than 100 details go unfilled over the summer, costing roughly $5,500 in administrative fees, and the board voted 5-0 to designate a new part-time civilian traffic controller position as a special municipal employee under MGL Chapter 268A — a classification that allows firefighters, DPW workers, and qualified civilians to be paid for traffic detail work without triggering the ethics statute's dual-compensation prohibition.

The board also approved a $7,000 grant to Arts Wayland for the October 3 Wayland Fest, funded from town center gift funds, with Member Christopher Reynolds abstaining, and authorized a $150,000 contract with Pare Corporation for the Loker Street Crossing Replacement Project. In a lengthy discussion about a possible operating override, the board reviewed Finance Director Brian Keveny's revised forecast projecting a first-year deficit of $831,000 for fiscal year 2028, down from $2.7 million in June, and debated whether to schedule a public forum in October before committing to a ballot timeline.

In the full story:

• Call to Order and Swearing-In of Officer Isaque Barcelone
• Commendations for Camp Chickami First Responders
• Civilian Traffic Controller as Special Municipal Employee
• Executive Session
• Operating Override Discussion
• Cable Advisory Committee Charge
• Fiscal Year 2026 Annual Town Report
• Eversource Grant of Location Hearing: Cochituate Road
• Arts Wayland Funding Request for Wayland Fest 2026
• Town Manager's Report
• Reappointments and Appointments
• Minutes, Correspondence, and Member Reports
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,605 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of September 8, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.