Wayland Select Board seeks peer review of $38.6 million MWRA water project

WAYLAND -- August 4, 2025, Wayland Select Board seeks a second engineering opinion on its $38.6 million MWRA water connection. Member William Whitney pressed for a third-party peer review of the dual-source project, whose estimated cost has nearly doubled from $22 million, and questioned whether the board should use Chapter 59, Section 21C(n) to send a debt exclusion directly to town meeting without a ballot question. "I just wonder if there isn't a less expensive way to meet the town's long-term needs," Whitney said, noting the connection fills only a 15 percent water-supply shortfall. Town Manager Michael McCall said Wayland has applied for a zero-interest, 20-year state loan and still holds a waiver of a $7 million MWRA admission fee. The board separately voted 4-0 to sign an intermunicipal agreement with Sudbury on Sherman's Bridge repairs, a $1.65 million project with $325,000 committed by MassDOT, and set May 4, 2026, as the date for annual town meeting.