Wayland Select Board unanimously opposes citizen petition banning firearms in town buildings

WAYLAND -- March 11, 2019, Wayland Select Board unanimously opposes citizen article banning firearms in municipal buildings. The board voted 5-0 against Article GG, filed by resident Dwayne, which would have extended the state's school-property firearms prohibition to town buildings and town-sponsored events. Selectman Lewis Jurist warned against "patchwork municipal bylaws" in a state with strong firearms laws, and resident Jared Nedzel told the board the proposal conflicts with state preemption and would carry a default $300 fine under existing bylaws. The police chief said the article's "other dangerous weapons" language could sweep in pepper spray. The board also unanimously endorsed Article R (high school athletic complex renovation) and Article Q (synthetic turf field at Loker), both heading to an April 23 Proposition 2½ debt exclusion ballot, and rejected a competing grass-field alternative 5-0. A $115,000 Snake Brook Dam design article was inserted 3-2 with no recommendation.