April 29, 2026 – LWV Issues Forum – Video & Transcript
April 29, 2026 - LWV Issues Forum
Good evening. My name is Irene Priester, and on behalf of the League of Women Voters, I would like to welcome you to our annual issues forum prior to town meeting.
Thank you all for attending. First and foremost, congratulations to the newly elected board members and volunteers from yesterday's election.
Thank you for stepping up yet again, most of you, to do the work of our town for all of us. Thank you.
The procedure for this evening is going to be, we have five articles we're going to cover, and we also have the pleasure of having Miranda Jones, our town moderator, here to speak in the beginning.
We'll talk about that in a second. The process is going to be, each speaker has a lot of time.
We have had technical difficulties, so our technical timer is not going to be working, but my finger will be the sign of you have one minute left for your presentation.
So we're moving along with technology here. When there are questions and answers, you can either put a question in the chat, or you can raise your hand and we'll call on you.
Raise your hand on the Zoom process. And just so that all of you know that this meeting is, in fact, being recorded by Zoom and will be shared both on the WACAM site as well as League of Women Voters site.
And probably the town site as well. I frankly don't know where WACAM posted.
But wherever they do, we'll see it there.
Great. So we're going to start this evening off with Miranda, who is going to speak to us about the, explain the two procedures in town meeting, the consent calendar and the abbreviated presentation procedure.
And if there are questions, Carol Martin is going to expound on those as well.
So, Miranda, over to you.
Irina, thank you so much. And thanks for inviting me to participate in the League's forum.
So I wanted to talk about abbreviated presentation procedure, which has been utilized in Wayland for quite some time now, but also the consent calendar, which we began last year.
Both are exceptions to the traditional manner of debating and voting.
And so with both abbreviated presentation procedure and the consent calendar, we take historically routine non-contentious articles and we curtail the process in order to vote.
Okay.
And so we're going to start this evening off with Miranda, who is going to expound on them more quickly and to get through them.
We're not trying to have any kind of lack of transparency.
And one of the reasons why we're doing this this evening is if there are any questions, informational requests about any of the articles that are put either on the consent calendar or done through the abbreviated presentation procedure, we want to be able to answer those questions now.
So then when we get to actual town meeting, we won't have to spend time answering the informational questions then.
So with regard to.
The abbreviated presentation procedure in this, we have a proponent waves are right to be heard. There is no debate. There is no opposition. It's a simple article again, non contentious, and it is designated in the table of contents in the front of the warrant with an asterisk.
And so the mover reads the motion notes, if there are any differences from the, from the version written in the warrant, and then we move right to the vote without any debate at all.
If there are any serious questions or opposition or discussion.
Is warranted, then we remove that warrant article from the abbreviated presentation procedure and we debate it and vote on it in the regular, traditional manner.
Similarly, we have the consent calendar, which is a little different in that there is no debate. There is no, there is no right to be heard rather than we group a series with that background noise.
So, we group a series of warrant articles again, non contentious articles.
And we.
Group on them, or we vote on them as a group as one vote is taken for the group and in the table of contents in your warrant, you can see which articles are listed. That will be on a consent calendar with the double dagger. It's referred to and.
This year we have two separate consent calendars last year. Our first year we did it. We had three this year. We have two. And so what I'd like to do is I'd like to go through the consent calendar articles and see.
If anybody who's on zoom has any question about any of these articles, and we have people, we have Carol Martin, the chair of the select board here. Who's well, who was volunteered her time to answer any questions.
We also have Tom Fay and bill Whitney from the select board. They may have answers as well. And so, so what I'll do is I'll start with the 1st consent calendar, which is, if you look at our table of contents, it starts on article.
4, the OPEB funding, and if there is anybody who has a question on any of these articles on the consent calendar, please either raise your hand, you do that by going down into the, I think it's the reaction buttons, or just speak up.
Just say hold and we'll, we'll get to your question of similar to how we would do at actual town meeting.
So we have the 1st article on the 1st consent calendar is article 4. It's OPEB funding.
Does anybody.
Have any questions about the article for OPEB funding.
Okay, seeing and hearing none, I'm going to listen if if I skip over if I move beyond 1, and you realize you have a question, just raise your hand or speak up that you want to you want to go back to 1.
Okay, article 5 fiscal year 2027 revolving fund expenditure limits. Does anybody have a question on that?
There's a hand that's risen. Yeah, Michael, can I just ask a question? Will any of this be displayed?
On the screen as we go through it, or is nothing displayed at town meeting or town meeting and at the moment I'm holding my warrant and following through that way town meeting.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay, so Mike, that's a good question. I'm trying to think of it last year at town meeting when we went through the process, because my back is always to the overhead screens.
Does anyone know what the answer is to Mike's question here?
Could you define display?
Yeah.
They are on display.
Could you define it, please?
What do you mean by display?
I asked, Will anything be displayed on the screen at town meeting, Carol?
That's my question. What are you looking for when you say anything?
Are you looking for the list of the items in the consent calendar, or are you looking for the articles?
Not looking for anything. I'm asking a question. Will anything be displayed?
Okay, so Carol, if I may, there is 2 separate things that are at town meeting.
There is a handout that will be provided that will show what the 2 consent calendars are and which warrant articles are on them.
So that will be handed out. The question, though, about what's being displayed on the overhead projector, I'm not sure, but I will find out that answer and get back to you.
Okay.
Sounds good. Thank you.
Yeah.
That handout could also be displayed, because that then shows the exact articles in a concise way.
Yeah.
I believe the motion says the following items are going to be taken.
Articles are going to be taken under consent.
If you'd like, we could display that.
That's probably a good idea.
But we don't have any particular slides for these particular articles.
So let's display the consent calendar motion then.
Okay.
Yeah, I'm just wondering how people follow along.
Yeah.
And maybe that other handout.
Well, it's in the motions.
And people have the motions when they're sitting at the...
But anyway, yes.
Well, why don't we see if we can display the consent calendar?
Yeah, but it's a good point, Mike.
Thank you for bringing that up.
Okay.
Sure.
Okay.
So does anyone have a question on Article 5, the fiscal year 2027, revolving fund expenditure limits?
Okay.
Article 6, the Surface Water Quality Committee budget.
Does anybody have a question on that?
Okay.
Hearing none.
Article 7, the Capital Stabilization Fund appropriation.
Does anyone have a question about that warrant article?
Okay.
And then the last one that'll be on the first consent calendar.
The first consent calendar is Article 8, Special Education Reserve Fund.
Does anybody have a question about that, Article 8?
Okay.
Well, let's hope that the consent calendar moves this quickly at town meeting on Monday.
Okay.
Then I'm going to go on to the second consent calendar, and that starts at Article 11.
And this just has four warrant articles on it.
So does anyone have a question about Article 11?
I have a question about Article 11, Choose Town Officers.
A question came up, was it last year?
I'm hoping not to have that again this year.
Anybody have a question about it? No. Okay. Article 12, Hear Reports. Does anyone have a question about that? Okay. Article 13, Sell or Trade Vehicles and Equipment. Does anyone have a question about Article 13? Hearing none, I'm going to go to the last article on the consent calendar. Article 14, Reaffirm Remote Participation at Town Meeting. Does anyone have a question about that? Wow. Okay. Great. Hopefully, this is the way things roll Monday. Okay. So then that brings us to the abbreviated presentation procedure articles. There are a large number of them, and I could go through each one of them, or I could just see if anybody has, I mean, it starts at Article 2, Paid Previous Fiscal Years, Unpaid Bills. We could go through them individually. Or we can just see if people have questions. Brandon, could I just suggest for a town meeting that you refer to the page number also, especially since we're flipping back and forth in the orange? Yep. Really good suggestion. Thank you. I will do that. All right. Does anyone here on the Zoom meeting have any questions about any of the articles under abbreviated presentation procedure? And just to be clear, Article 19 on page 61, the Community Preservation Committee Recommended Project Appropriations, that is being removed from the page. That is being removed from the abbreviated presentation procedure. It will be presented in the traditional manner. Nobody. Okay. Well, if further on down in this form, if people have questions that come in late, I'm happy to entertain them if we get through the rest of it. So, but I'm not seeing any questions at all for information. May this be a good omen for the Fisher's Town Meeting. Yes. May it be. So, we're going to get a town meeting done in one night, it's sounding like. Right? May the force be with us. Yes. That's right. That's right. Okay. Well, if no one has any questions or requests for information about any of the articles, either on the consent calendar or on the abbreviated presentation procedure, then my suggestion is that we move on to the more substantive media articles that may be somewhat contentious. Okay. If that's okay with everyone, I see no objections. Let's move on. So, Article 15, Water Supply, is being presented to us by Mike Wagonbarrow, and he is the Vice Chair of the DPW. And you have, according to the agenda, 12 minutes, and I will be your timer. Great. Thanks, Irina. Thanks, Mike. Appreciate you having us here. And thanks, Miranda, for hosting or guiding us. Do I start with the... Stating the article itself, I move you, Madam Moderator, that the Town vote to appropriate $38.6 million for the construction of a Happy Hollow Water Treatment Facility and a connection to the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority, MWRA, water system. And to meet this appropriation, the Treasurer, with the approval of the Select Board, is authorized to borrow said sum in accordance with General Law Chapter 44, Sections 7 and 8, and any other enabling authority, and issue bonds to the Board. And to meet this appropriation, the Treasurer, with the approval of the Select Board, is authorized to borrow said sum in accordance with General Law Chapter 44, Sections 7 and 8, and any other enabling authority, and issue bonds or notes of the Town therefor. My question, I guess, is, is that part of the time I have to speak about the motion? You mean a Town meeting? Or no? Yes. A Town meeting. Yeah. I think when you get up there, that's when the clock starts running on the... Oh. When... I said on the 45 minutes of debate, but when you want to... I'll ask for a second, and once I hear one, I'll say, do you wish to speak to your motion? And then your clock starts running. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Okay. All right. Yeah. Because otherwise, it's not fair for people who have lengthier motions than others. Yeah. Okay. Through no fault of their own. Okay? Okay. So that was the motion part. Let's assume it was seconded and moved then? Yeah. Let's hope so. Okay. All right. Yes. Thank you, Madam Moderator. I'd like to speak to my motion. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Sure. To be very clear, direct and transparent, none- Just give me for a second, interrupting you. This is what you're going to actually be saying at town meeting? Yeah, this will be the supportive comments to the motion. So I guess you can start the clock now. You're welcome to do that or you can do that in the more casual dialogue right now to explain the motion, however you choose because you don't have to follow the strict town meeting procedures at the moment. We're looser. And if you want to explain it with your own words, please feel free to do so, Mike. Okay. And we do have slides. Will someone present those? Should I present those now? Or how does that work? So with the slides, that's why you submit them to the town manager's office. They will present them. And then it's up to you if you want to show them now. This is really for informational purposes. If people have questions about this article, if you want to show slides, by all means. There's a screen share. And they're showing, Mike. Yep. Okay, great. So I'll be a little challenged trying to read this and display the slides, but I think it's important. Okay. So, yes, thank you, Madam Moderator. I'd like to speak to my motion. To be very clear, direct, and transparent, none of Wayland's currently permitted water supplies will comply with the new federal EPA four parts per trillion PFAS standards that go into effect in 2029. None of our water will meet these new requirements. What does this mean for Wayland? It means that unless we implement a solution to provide compliant water, we'll be in a situation similar to the one we faced in 2021, when MassDEP introduced new PFAS standards. At that point, our primary water source was declared noncompliant.
Sorry, I lost my place.
At that point, our primary water source was declared noncompliant, and we began distributing bottled water for drinking and cooking. This is definitely not the situation we want to be in again in 2029. Okay. In addition to the more stringent PFAS compliance requirements coming our way, our current infrastructure is failing and requires a major overhaul. In this fiscal year alone, our current temporary PFAS filtering system has failed multiple times, requiring us to activate our emergency MWRA connection three times to date. This is a very expensive option. Stated simply, we need a new system, one that can support Wayland's water requirements for the long term. So, what have we done? What have we done to date? Well, for the past five plus years now, staff, board members, and engineers have examined a very wide variety of options to deliver PFAS-free water. After a significant analysis, we settled on a robust yet flexible solution that is the most cost-effective in the long term and provides a great deal of redundancy. The dual-source system selected consists of a permanent, granulated, activated carbon PFAS remediation and treatment facility at Happy Hollow, supported by a permanent connection to the MWRA system that would be utilized only when additional support is required to meet demand. This plan isn't new. The Town has approved each design step along the way.
I am advancing this. So, that's the Happy Hollow treatment facility proposed and it shows the current PFAS treatment temporary treatment facility in the flood zone. So, we'll be moving out of the flood zone. This is the pumping station. on Castle Road that would support the pumping of water from the MWRA system as required.
And I'll continue. This plan is not new. The town has approved each design step along the way. Over $3.3 million in design funds have been approved so far, and we're now at the point where we need your approval to borrow the funds to begin construction. Why is this so urgent? Well, in addition to the 2029 compliance deadline and the current ongoing system failures, it's extremely important that we proceed now so that we can secure the $7 million MWRA entrance fee waiver. Simply put, voting yes to this article is a yes vote to water in Wayland. Voting against would have severe consequences in terms of our ability to supply potable water to the town of Wayland. The bottom line is that we need and request your support tonight so that we can continue to deliver safe and cost-effective water in Wayland. With that said, I'll yield my remaining time to Select Board Chair Carol Martin as the Select Board is co-sponsoring this important article.
Okay. Carol, do you have anything to say right now at this point or not?
The Select Board obviously is the co-sponsor, and we're just going to get up and say this has been a long journey. We are not finished our journey, as Mike has pointed out in his number one slide, and this is the next step. And of course, the Select Board is going to urge support. I don't have any details to add to the charts. Okay. I know that there were a couple questions out there. Okay. First, please, Judy. Thank you. I just wanted to point out our slides, and Mike, your speech says 2029, but on page 55 of the warrant, it says 2031. So that might be a typo. Where was that, Judy? Page 55 of the warrant. Yep. Second paragraph of the Finance Committee comment. Yes.
Good call. Yeah. So I can probably explain that if allowed. Yes, please, Tom. Yeah, sure. So the regulation is to be promulgated with a deadline of 2029. There was some reports that that may have been delayed for two years. So perhaps when we were writing up the article and bringing it before the Finance Committee, that 2031 might have been a date we were using. But- But it's not a typo. Yeah. We currently understand that it will be 2029.
So it's not a typo. It's not a typo. It's likely back in January, perhaps there was some thought that it might have been delayed two years, but we understand right now, as we're speaking tonight, that it's 2029. Yeah. And I think the information I've heard recently from the federal EPA is that there may be some leniency. i think tom i think it still will go into effect in 2029 but there may be some leniency with the
implementation so it's a little bit of a moving target but nevertheless um that seven million dollar waiver from the mwra is time sensitive okay i have a couple questions here that i'll ask um should private wells have more regulation since the water comes from the same aquifer you want me to take that one uh whoever i'm it's you're open to so the water from private wells does not come from the same aquifer um aquifers are generally about eight or nine hundred feet deep the um the public uh apartment the private wells are water uh comes from an aquifer that's about 60 feet deep so it's much more shallow so the private wells are governed and overseen by the wayland health department but they really don't have any interaction with our groundwater wells at the four well fields that we have currently in town okay um next question might higher use fees lead to more private wells
it might be something that people as a knee-jerk reaction might think that that was a more economical and practical uh approach to getting their drinking water but in reality um it would not be there's a whole host of cross-connection control regulations through the commonwealth's mass regulations that would prohibit or strictly limit people's ability to use private wells for drinking water so i think that they will find that it is not as economical or practical to go that route okay and if i if i can add to that if folks are going to use that for cooking or potable drinking water they're going to want to include significant filtering as well because pfos is ubiquitous and it's we've found it across wayland at all of our wells so if they want to yeah if they want to have safe uh potable drinking and cooking water um they're going to need to do some significant filtering okay and i have one more here what will happen if this article fails to get the two-thirds vote so as mike had pointed out in his reading is that we will have and i'm almost being kind when i say significant challenges they could be catastrophic challenges mike had mentioned that currently we have regular failings of our equipment our equipment is old it's aged it's beyond its useful design life many of the parts are no longer made so we're working hard to even get you know to the 2029 point where we'll be able to activate the new treatment plant and the mwra connection so should this not pass on monday night we've we face the real risk of not being able to provide enough water in town i'd like to also add to that that there's a lot of work that needs to be done to make sure that we have the resources and the ingenuity to do that and i think it's going to be a long night and i would also add that we will forfeit the seven million dollar entry fee and then when we need to come back and reapply the cost of this project will have increased not only by the entry fee which who knows if the mwra wants to even increase that also the regular construction costs it's a very expensive negative vote yeah any other questions i don't see hands from the people that are on below if there is someone saying it's a lot of tips and speak up because I can't see besides what my screen is here. Otherwise, we will move on to the next article. Thank you very much, Mike and Tom. Next article is Article 16, which is 25 Holiday Road, and our select board member, Bill Whitney, has 10 minutes and then some if you need to present. Thanks, Bill. Thank you, Irina. I'd like to thank the League for sponsoring this forum, and I'd like to give you just a very quick background on the property of 25 Holiday Road. This is a parcel of land that's owned by the town that's located between Route 27 and 126 near the North Cemetery. It's a 13.7-acre parcel, which was acquired by the town in 1956 for school related purposes, and remains in the care, custody, and control of the school committee. To date, no data has been found on the property, but we do have some information on the property development of any sort has happened over the last 70 years. In June of 2017, the Wayland Real Estate Asset Planning Committee, or RAP Committee, issued its report with a recommended comprehensive long-term facilities plan related to the future of municipal land and buildings. Among the properties studied was the Holiday Road parcel, and it was the committee's recommendation that the property be reused for market and affordable housing. So, with respect to the property, I'd like to give you a brief overview of this report. With respect to Warren Article 16, it is jointly sponsored and endorsed by the Select Board and the School Committee. We are seeking town meeting approval for an expenditure of up to $200,000 to explore a range of potential uses for the site, including active and passive recreation, town use, including use as a school, or development of affordable and market-rate housing. Has it been discussed in any other report? If so, please do not hesitate to see the report.
In several public meetings of the Select Board and School Committee, including a public forum on this article held on April 13, the Select Board has no intention of studying multifamily housing uses anywhere approaching the height and density of the Alta-Oxbow development on Route 30. Rather, we propose to look at single-family lots consistent with the existing R40 zoning and possibly clustered townhouse-type units that would leave the balance of the site as open space. This type of preliminary due diligence would help inform future decisions made by the School Committee, other town boards and committees, and ultimately by the voters as to the best use of the land. The requested appropriation is for research and analysis only and does not affect the need to seek approval at a future town meeting and relevant town boards and committees before a potential project could go forward. Also, should our early investigations indicate that development of the site is unworkable, there will be no need to expend any remaining funds. As part of its ongoing K-8 Facilities Master Planning effort, the School Committee's consultants have identified the Holiday Road site, among others, as a possible site for a potential new elementary school. The types of investigations that would be financed with the approval of this warrant article are consistent with the type of due diligence investigations that the Massachusetts School Building Authority would require as part of a new school feasibility study. The Select Board is interested in understanding whether the site affords a possible opportunity to create more housing opportunities in the town and to make a comprehensive plan for the community. The Board also has a plan to make a contribution toward enhancing the town's tax base. As the town continues to confront the financial challenges of maintaining the present level of services with a limited ability to raise revenue through property taxation, fostering new growth has been identified as an important potential source of new operating revenue. The following due diligence activities would be financed by the requested funding. First, a Phase 1 Environmental Assessment will be commissioned to understand the situation and the scope of the project's future. and, depending on the results of that analysis, would establish whether further environmental study is needed. Also a site survey and preliminary site engineering will inform the availability and sufficiency of utilities to the site, as well as distribution of those utilities within the property. Stormwater management will also be addressed. Next, geotechnical analysis to determine the bearing capacity of soils, groundwater elevation, assessing wastewater treatment options, and identifying potential contaminants that are possibly present would be accomplished. We then want to assess the possible presence of wetlands and understand the implications of the site's inclusion in a Zone 1 capture zone and a Zone 2 protection area with respect to the Baldwin Pond wells. Conceptually, the site is a site that has been used for a number of years. The site is a site that has been used for a number of years. The site is a site that has been used for a number of years. The site is a site that has been used for a number of years. Structural site planning to test options for reuse alternatives for the site could then be undertaken. Alternatives for siting the structures, provision of open space, and possibly other uses on the site could be explored. Traffic analysis would be commissioned to determine potential traffic impacts of potential reuses, as well as recommended mitigation measures. We'd also want to assess the potential range of revenue and expense to the town of the site. In the course of this work we would want to explore possible permitting approaches for the recommended development including, without limitation, azeraite zoning, conservation cluster development zoning, Chapter 40B possibly as a local initiative project. We then also want to commission an appraisal to establish the market value of the property for the recommended reuse or reuses. The requested sum would be $21,000.00 per acre. also pay legal fees associated with the proposal, including regulatory reviews, review of a request for development proposals, preparation of documents related to the eventual conveyance of the property, and possibly including deed restrictions to ensure the continued availability of the site for walking and passive recreation. Upon adoption of this article, the Select Board plans to appoint a 25 holiday road visioning committee that includes school committee and neighborhood representation to assist the Select Board in developing and reviewing data and information pertaining to the site. As previously noted, much of the work that is planned will be useful to the school committee should decide to pursue the holiday road site as a possible site for a new school. And also to reiterate, we do not intend to test alternatives that approach the height and density of the Alta Oxbow development. Thank you. Thank you, Bill. Are there any questions
the audience? I have one here that was sent in. The advertisement opposing this article talks about hundreds of trees being cut before the review is conducted. Is that factual? That is not. We've never discussed that. Okay. I'm looking for hands or signs. Not seeing any. And we can always come back to a question later on because we're going to have adequate time. Let's move to article 21, rail trail easement. Tom Fay from the Select Board is our presenter here. Thanks, Tom. Good evening. Pleasure to see you, Iryna. Thank you, Madam moderator. So the Mass Central Rail Trail, I'll call it a happy project. It's a positive project. It is the longest developing rail trail in the state of Massachusetts. It connects 27 communities through public, shared, use paths it extends in principle from Boston to Northampton but practically speaking it currently begins in Waltham and then heads west so a portion of the rail trail in Wayland as you know has been completed so a 4.7 mile segment of the rail trail extends from the Wayland library to Jones Road in Waltham and that was completed in 2019. now the state seeks to complete the rail trail from the Wayland depot to the Sudbury Wayland town line thus connecting the paved path with the recently paved rail trail in Sudbury the work hopefully will be done by the end of 2027. so this article concerns easements so as many of you know easements are legal agreements granting temporary or permanent rights to use a portion of a property owner's land for construction related activities while the owner retains land ownership the beneficiary for example a contractor or municipality gains access for tasks like storing materials operating equipment or utility installation easements of course are used for other purposes but in the municipal world that's typically their role the easements here would last about five years it's it's anticipated that the project will be done long before five years but that's typically the time period for municipal uh easements like these so the construction work planned by the state would include installation of a bridge over the Sudbury river just west of Russell's garden center so in order to complete the rail trail the state seeks to require a permanent easement for a nominal fee under 100 dollars regarding land currently owned by the new owners of the Wayland town center NP Wayland LLC the state has asked the town to acquire the easement from NP Wayland LLC to to the extent that the their land runs through its property NP Wayland LLC is agreeable to this plan the state also seeks temporary easements for construction purposes on about 17,847 square feet of land near the Wayland depot so a handout will be available at town meeting that includes the mass DOT plans I'm happy to walk through the plans now sharing my screen to discuss the plans and some of the plans that you will find in the plans there is a link in the description of the slide if you want to check out some of the plans and the plans that I'm going to share with you to help you understand more about the plans if the particular parcels if anyone would like also the in the warrant you'll see a link that you can look at the plans yourself if you like and they out they outline the different parcels that are involved thank you Tom I'm looking for any questions if not I have a couple here That's exactly the direction that it's going. Are there cost estimates? The only cost estimates would be just traditional legal costs to deal with these easements. The state actually asked us to deal with the easements of non-town properties like Russell's and others. But we told the state that it's their project, that we're very hesitant to do that, and if we agreed to do it, we need an assurance that the town would be reimbursed. So to answer the question, no significant cost. Okay. And the last question I have before me, who will pay, the Commonwealth or the town? The Commonwealth will be paying for the construction of the rail track. The Commonwealth plans to pay the legal fees to deal with the easement issues. Okay. Looking again at the audience, anybody have any questions? And again, I remind you, we can come back to any of these articles after we complete other questions. And I'm looking at Wacom. I get the sense that they're broadcasting now, that it's not that they're probably recording, but it says on the thing that they're broadcasting. So hopefully we have a larger audience watching as well. Okay. All right, Tom. And lastly, we move on to Article 1738, liquor license and cryptocurrency. Bill Whitney again. Thank you. Article 17 is a proposal seeking town meeting approval for the town to petition the general court with a home rule petition that would allow the town to issue 10 additional liquor licenses. Under state law, the state legislature controls the number of liquor licenses that any municipality may wish to issue. We presently have 14 licenses, all of which have been issued. We are seeking an additional 10 licenses through the general court. And so we're seeking town meeting authorization to file this home rule petition for consideration by the general court. We do so as having a liquor license tends to be quite important for full service restaurants to have. And so in order to accommodate that, we'd like to have the ability to issue additional licenses. Bill, I have a question. Yes. This article is listed as being under the abbreviated presentation procedure. Do you anticipate any controversy with this article? I don't know how many teetotalers we have in town, Mary. I don't know. Fair enough. We have not heard anything as yet. But obviously, as you have explained, to the extent that someone has a concern, I suppose it could always be brought out. Yeah. Okay. Fair enough. I just like to anticipate when we start deviating off course. Judy, I see your hand up. Thank you. So, Bill, my question is a 14 current liquor license. Who are they? I mean, it's not listed in the warrant. It's just a curiosity. Well, Judy, funny you should ask. You have it at your fingertips? I do not, sadly. That may be a question that's asked. Let's see how well he does naming them all. Well, I don't have personal experience, you understand. You haven't frequented all 14 establishments. Yeah. And I will, maybe I'll do a live telecast from one. I will get that to you, Judy, and I will be prepared to address that at town meeting. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. Mike? Yeah. Does this include liquor stores? That was my question, too. It's strictly for on-premise consumption. Thank you, Mike, for asking that question. I should have mentioned that. So it doesn't do Lavin's or things like that. It's just- Yeah. That's correct. Bell's and 121 or whatever. Yeah. Restaurant. Great. Yeah. Because I could see some potential concern if you're in one of the few liquor stores in town, and there might be four others opening. But I understand now. Thank you. Thank you. Are there- Yes, go ahead, Carol. Yeah. Bill, I hope you don't mind if I add one thing. The reason that we are applying for this is that what makes a town attractive to potential new businesses coming into town, particularly if they are in this restaurant serving business, is if there's a liquor license available. So by not having any full service liquor licenses available, a business that may be considering locating to Whalen would pass us by for another community that does have one. So we really do need to have some liquor licenses available to issue. So for instance, Carol, the new thing that's being built in Whalen Town Center, Turan, is that what it's called? They could not get a liquor license right now because we're out of them to issue? You're talking the Turan that's going into the Whole Foods? Correct. They actually, I believe, got our last two full liquor licenses. Okay. That's an example. Which is why it's important for the board to say we now need to apply at the recommendation, obviously, of the town manager. Yeah. Okay. Any other questions on that? If not, then, Bill, you can move to the cryptocurrency, Article 38. Sure. If I may, Irina, Article 31 is another liquor license item, a conversion of wine and malt licenses. So if the town were to accept MGL Chapter 138, Section 12D, it enables communities to permit the conversion of a wine or malt license to a full liquor license. Anticipating Judy's question, we have one such license in Whalen, and that is Mel's Commonwealth Cafe. But if there were future licenses to be issued, that would be the case. With respect to the cryptocurrency item, this seeks to ban the use or the location of cryptocurrency ATMs. Okay. And it's not just in Whalen. It's in the town. There has been a lot of concern about abuse by them, people getting calls saying, you know, your relative is in jail or your check didn't clear for something and you need to go to a crypto ATM and make a deposit there. And once those funds are gone, they are virtually untraceable. And so the idea is to prevent any such abuse for residents of the town by banning them in the town of Whalen. Okay. Are there any questions on that or any of the other articles that we have covered as well as the moderator's discussion earlier on? I hope the town meeting goes as flawlessly and as quickly as possible. I mean, this is why we do it, to be able to answer questions ahead of time. I hope people will not only watch the broadcast but also go on to the town website or to the league website to watch this and get informed before. But we're trying to streamline town meeting but yet also address people's concerns and issues. So thank you all for attending. Thank you for those who are listening. Thank you for those who will continue to listen and mostly for those who really volunteer in our town government. in our town government and and help help us do the job for what is a large budget these days way different than when i was a select person we've come a long way from those years so and uh please come to town meeting on monday uh starting at 6 30 because we have the privilege of being in a place where we are our democracy is us and we can really make a difference and our voices can be heard so on behalf of the league thank you very much and hope to see you on monday thanks arena thank you thank you
Anybody have a question about it? No. Okay. Article 12, Hear Reports. Does anyone have a question about that? Okay. Article 13, Sell or Trade Vehicles and Equipment. Does anyone have a question about Article 13? Hearing none, I'm going to go to the last article on the consent calendar. Article 14, Reaffirm Remote Participation at Town Meeting. Does anyone have a question about that? Wow. Okay. Great. Hopefully, this is the way things roll Monday. Okay. So then that brings us to the abbreviated presentation procedure articles. There are a large number of them, and I could go through each one of them, or I could just see if anybody has, I mean, it starts at Article 2, Paid Previous Fiscal Years, Unpaid Bills. We could go through them individually. Or we can just see if people have questions. Brandon, could I just suggest for a town meeting that you refer to the page number also, especially since we're flipping back and forth in the orange? Yep. Really good suggestion. Thank you. I will do that. All right. Does anyone here on the Zoom meeting have any questions about any of the articles under abbreviated presentation procedure? And just to be clear, Article 19 on page 61, the Community Preservation Committee Recommended Project Appropriations, that is being removed from the page. That is being removed from the abbreviated presentation procedure. It will be presented in the traditional manner. Nobody. Okay. Well, if further on down in this form, if people have questions that come in late, I'm happy to entertain them if we get through the rest of it. So, but I'm not seeing any questions at all for information. May this be a good omen for the Fisher's Town Meeting. Yes. May it be. So, we're going to get a town meeting done in one night, it's sounding like. Right? May the force be with us. Yes. That's right. That's right. Okay. Well, if no one has any questions or requests for information about any of the articles, either on the consent calendar or on the abbreviated presentation procedure, then my suggestion is that we move on to the more substantive media articles that may be somewhat contentious. Okay. If that's okay with everyone, I see no objections. Let's move on. So, Article 15, Water Supply, is being presented to us by Mike Wagonbarrow, and he is the Vice Chair of the DPW. And you have, according to the agenda, 12 minutes, and I will be your timer. Great. Thanks, Irina. Thanks, Mike. Appreciate you having us here. And thanks, Miranda, for hosting or guiding us. Do I start with the... Stating the article itself, I move you, Madam Moderator, that the Town vote to appropriate $38.6 million for the construction of a Happy Hollow Water Treatment Facility and a connection to the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority, MWRA, water system. And to meet this appropriation, the Treasurer, with the approval of the Select Board, is authorized to borrow said sum in accordance with General Law Chapter 44, Sections 7 and 8, and any other enabling authority, and issue bonds to the Board. And to meet this appropriation, the Treasurer, with the approval of the Select Board, is authorized to borrow said sum in accordance with General Law Chapter 44, Sections 7 and 8, and any other enabling authority, and issue bonds or notes of the Town therefor. My question, I guess, is, is that part of the time I have to speak about the motion? You mean a Town meeting? Or no? Yes. A Town meeting. Yeah. I think when you get up there, that's when the clock starts running on the... Oh. When... I said on the 45 minutes of debate, but when you want to... I'll ask for a second, and once I hear one, I'll say, do you wish to speak to your motion? And then your clock starts running. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Okay. All right. Yeah. Because otherwise, it's not fair for people who have lengthier motions than others. Yeah. Okay. Through no fault of their own. Okay? Okay. So that was the motion part. Let's assume it was seconded and moved then? Yeah. Let's hope so. Okay. All right. Yes. Thank you, Madam Moderator. I'd like to speak to my motion. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Sure. To be very clear, direct and transparent, none- Just give me for a second, interrupting you. This is what you're going to actually be saying at town meeting? Yeah, this will be the supportive comments to the motion. So I guess you can start the clock now. You're welcome to do that or you can do that in the more casual dialogue right now to explain the motion, however you choose because you don't have to follow the strict town meeting procedures at the moment. We're looser. And if you want to explain it with your own words, please feel free to do so, Mike. Okay. And we do have slides. Will someone present those? Should I present those now? Or how does that work? So with the slides, that's why you submit them to the town manager's office. They will present them. And then it's up to you if you want to show them now. This is really for informational purposes. If people have questions about this article, if you want to show slides, by all means. There's a screen share. And they're showing, Mike. Yep. Okay, great. So I'll be a little challenged trying to read this and display the slides, but I think it's important. Okay. So, yes, thank you, Madam Moderator. I'd like to speak to my motion. To be very clear, direct, and transparent, none of Wayland's currently permitted water supplies will comply with the new federal EPA four parts per trillion PFAS standards that go into effect in 2029. None of our water will meet these new requirements. What does this mean for Wayland? It means that unless we implement a solution to provide compliant water, we'll be in a situation similar to the one we faced in 2021, when MassDEP introduced new PFAS standards. At that point, our primary water source was declared noncompliant.
Sorry, I lost my place.
At that point, our primary water source was declared noncompliant, and we began distributing bottled water for drinking and cooking. This is definitely not the situation we want to be in again in 2029. Okay. In addition to the more stringent PFAS compliance requirements coming our way, our current infrastructure is failing and requires a major overhaul. In this fiscal year alone, our current temporary PFAS filtering system has failed multiple times, requiring us to activate our emergency MWRA connection three times to date. This is a very expensive option. Stated simply, we need a new system, one that can support Wayland's water requirements for the long term. So, what have we done? What have we done to date? Well, for the past five plus years now, staff, board members, and engineers have examined a very wide variety of options to deliver PFAS-free water. After a significant analysis, we settled on a robust yet flexible solution that is the most cost-effective in the long term and provides a great deal of redundancy. The dual-source system selected consists of a permanent, granulated, activated carbon PFAS remediation and treatment facility at Happy Hollow, supported by a permanent connection to the MWRA system that would be utilized only when additional support is required to meet demand. This plan isn't new. The Town has approved each design step along the way.
I am advancing this. So, that's the Happy Hollow treatment facility proposed and it shows the current PFAS treatment temporary treatment facility in the flood zone. So, we'll be moving out of the flood zone. This is the pumping station. on Castle Road that would support the pumping of water from the MWRA system as required.
And I'll continue. This plan is not new. The town has approved each design step along the way. Over $3.3 million in design funds have been approved so far, and we're now at the point where we need your approval to borrow the funds to begin construction. Why is this so urgent? Well, in addition to the 2029 compliance deadline and the current ongoing system failures, it's extremely important that we proceed now so that we can secure the $7 million MWRA entrance fee waiver. Simply put, voting yes to this article is a yes vote to water in Wayland. Voting against would have severe consequences in terms of our ability to supply potable water to the town of Wayland. The bottom line is that we need and request your support tonight so that we can continue to deliver safe and cost-effective water in Wayland. With that said, I'll yield my remaining time to Select Board Chair Carol Martin as the Select Board is co-sponsoring this important article.
Okay. Carol, do you have anything to say right now at this point or not?
The Select Board obviously is the co-sponsor, and we're just going to get up and say this has been a long journey. We are not finished our journey, as Mike has pointed out in his number one slide, and this is the next step. And of course, the Select Board is going to urge support. I don't have any details to add to the charts. Okay. I know that there were a couple questions out there. Okay. First, please, Judy. Thank you. I just wanted to point out our slides, and Mike, your speech says 2029, but on page 55 of the warrant, it says 2031. So that might be a typo. Where was that, Judy? Page 55 of the warrant. Yep. Second paragraph of the Finance Committee comment. Yes.
Good call. Yeah. So I can probably explain that if allowed. Yes, please, Tom. Yeah, sure. So the regulation is to be promulgated with a deadline of 2029. There was some reports that that may have been delayed for two years. So perhaps when we were writing up the article and bringing it before the Finance Committee, that 2031 might have been a date we were using. But- But it's not a typo. Yeah. We currently understand that it will be 2029.
So it's not a typo. It's not a typo. It's likely back in January, perhaps there was some thought that it might have been delayed two years, but we understand right now, as we're speaking tonight, that it's 2029. Yeah. And I think the information I've heard recently from the federal EPA is that there may be some leniency. i think tom i think it still will go into effect in 2029 but there may be some leniency with the
implementation so it's a little bit of a moving target but nevertheless um that seven million dollar waiver from the mwra is time sensitive okay i have a couple questions here that i'll ask um should private wells have more regulation since the water comes from the same aquifer you want me to take that one uh whoever i'm it's you're open to so the water from private wells does not come from the same aquifer um aquifers are generally about eight or nine hundred feet deep the um the public uh apartment the private wells are water uh comes from an aquifer that's about 60 feet deep so it's much more shallow so the private wells are governed and overseen by the wayland health department but they really don't have any interaction with our groundwater wells at the four well fields that we have currently in town okay um next question might higher use fees lead to more private wells
it might be something that people as a knee-jerk reaction might think that that was a more economical and practical uh approach to getting their drinking water but in reality um it would not be there's a whole host of cross-connection control regulations through the commonwealth's mass regulations that would prohibit or strictly limit people's ability to use private wells for drinking water so i think that they will find that it is not as economical or practical to go that route okay and if i if i can add to that if folks are going to use that for cooking or potable drinking water they're going to want to include significant filtering as well because pfos is ubiquitous and it's we've found it across wayland at all of our wells so if they want to yeah if they want to have safe uh potable drinking and cooking water um they're going to need to do some significant filtering okay and i have one more here what will happen if this article fails to get the two-thirds vote so as mike had pointed out in his reading is that we will have and i'm almost being kind when i say significant challenges they could be catastrophic challenges mike had mentioned that currently we have regular failings of our equipment our equipment is old it's aged it's beyond its useful design life many of the parts are no longer made so we're working hard to even get you know to the 2029 point where we'll be able to activate the new treatment plant and the mwra connection so should this not pass on monday night we've we face the real risk of not being able to provide enough water in town i'd like to also add to that that there's a lot of work that needs to be done to make sure that we have the resources and the ingenuity to do that and i think it's going to be a long night and i would also add that we will forfeit the seven million dollar entry fee and then when we need to come back and reapply the cost of this project will have increased not only by the entry fee which who knows if the mwra wants to even increase that also the regular construction costs it's a very expensive negative vote yeah any other questions i don't see hands from the people that are on below if there is someone saying it's a lot of tips and speak up because I can't see besides what my screen is here. Otherwise, we will move on to the next article. Thank you very much, Mike and Tom. Next article is Article 16, which is 25 Holiday Road, and our select board member, Bill Whitney, has 10 minutes and then some if you need to present. Thanks, Bill. Thank you, Irina. I'd like to thank the League for sponsoring this forum, and I'd like to give you just a very quick background on the property of 25 Holiday Road. This is a parcel of land that's owned by the town that's located between Route 27 and 126 near the North Cemetery. It's a 13.7-acre parcel, which was acquired by the town in 1956 for school related purposes, and remains in the care, custody, and control of the school committee. To date, no data has been found on the property, but we do have some information on the property development of any sort has happened over the last 70 years. In June of 2017, the Wayland Real Estate Asset Planning Committee, or RAP Committee, issued its report with a recommended comprehensive long-term facilities plan related to the future of municipal land and buildings. Among the properties studied was the Holiday Road parcel, and it was the committee's recommendation that the property be reused for market and affordable housing. So, with respect to the property, I'd like to give you a brief overview of this report. With respect to Warren Article 16, it is jointly sponsored and endorsed by the Select Board and the School Committee. We are seeking town meeting approval for an expenditure of up to $200,000 to explore a range of potential uses for the site, including active and passive recreation, town use, including use as a school, or development of affordable and market-rate housing. Has it been discussed in any other report? If so, please do not hesitate to see the report.
In several public meetings of the Select Board and School Committee, including a public forum on this article held on April 13, the Select Board has no intention of studying multifamily housing uses anywhere approaching the height and density of the Alta-Oxbow development on Route 30. Rather, we propose to look at single-family lots consistent with the existing R40 zoning and possibly clustered townhouse-type units that would leave the balance of the site as open space. This type of preliminary due diligence would help inform future decisions made by the School Committee, other town boards and committees, and ultimately by the voters as to the best use of the land. The requested appropriation is for research and analysis only and does not affect the need to seek approval at a future town meeting and relevant town boards and committees before a potential project could go forward. Also, should our early investigations indicate that development of the site is unworkable, there will be no need to expend any remaining funds. As part of its ongoing K-8 Facilities Master Planning effort, the School Committee's consultants have identified the Holiday Road site, among others, as a possible site for a potential new elementary school. The types of investigations that would be financed with the approval of this warrant article are consistent with the type of due diligence investigations that the Massachusetts School Building Authority would require as part of a new school feasibility study. The Select Board is interested in understanding whether the site affords a possible opportunity to create more housing opportunities in the town and to make a comprehensive plan for the community. The Board also has a plan to make a contribution toward enhancing the town's tax base. As the town continues to confront the financial challenges of maintaining the present level of services with a limited ability to raise revenue through property taxation, fostering new growth has been identified as an important potential source of new operating revenue. The following due diligence activities would be financed by the requested funding. First, a Phase 1 Environmental Assessment will be commissioned to understand the situation and the scope of the project's future. and, depending on the results of that analysis, would establish whether further environmental study is needed. Also a site survey and preliminary site engineering will inform the availability and sufficiency of utilities to the site, as well as distribution of those utilities within the property. Stormwater management will also be addressed. Next, geotechnical analysis to determine the bearing capacity of soils, groundwater elevation, assessing wastewater treatment options, and identifying potential contaminants that are possibly present would be accomplished. We then want to assess the possible presence of wetlands and understand the implications of the site's inclusion in a Zone 1 capture zone and a Zone 2 protection area with respect to the Baldwin Pond wells. Conceptually, the site is a site that has been used for a number of years. The site is a site that has been used for a number of years. The site is a site that has been used for a number of years. The site is a site that has been used for a number of years. Structural site planning to test options for reuse alternatives for the site could then be undertaken. Alternatives for siting the structures, provision of open space, and possibly other uses on the site could be explored. Traffic analysis would be commissioned to determine potential traffic impacts of potential reuses, as well as recommended mitigation measures. We'd also want to assess the potential range of revenue and expense to the town of the site. In the course of this work we would want to explore possible permitting approaches for the recommended development including, without limitation, azeraite zoning, conservation cluster development zoning, Chapter 40B possibly as a local initiative project. We then also want to commission an appraisal to establish the market value of the property for the recommended reuse or reuses. The requested sum would be $21,000.00 per acre. also pay legal fees associated with the proposal, including regulatory reviews, review of a request for development proposals, preparation of documents related to the eventual conveyance of the property, and possibly including deed restrictions to ensure the continued availability of the site for walking and passive recreation. Upon adoption of this article, the Select Board plans to appoint a 25 holiday road visioning committee that includes school committee and neighborhood representation to assist the Select Board in developing and reviewing data and information pertaining to the site. As previously noted, much of the work that is planned will be useful to the school committee should decide to pursue the holiday road site as a possible site for a new school. And also to reiterate, we do not intend to test alternatives that approach the height and density of the Alta Oxbow development. Thank you. Thank you, Bill. Are there any questions
the audience? I have one here that was sent in. The advertisement opposing this article talks about hundreds of trees being cut before the review is conducted. Is that factual? That is not. We've never discussed that. Okay. I'm looking for hands or signs. Not seeing any. And we can always come back to a question later on because we're going to have adequate time. Let's move to article 21, rail trail easement. Tom Fay from the Select Board is our presenter here. Thanks, Tom. Good evening. Pleasure to see you, Iryna. Thank you, Madam moderator. So the Mass Central Rail Trail, I'll call it a happy project. It's a positive project. It is the longest developing rail trail in the state of Massachusetts. It connects 27 communities through public, shared, use paths it extends in principle from Boston to Northampton but practically speaking it currently begins in Waltham and then heads west so a portion of the rail trail in Wayland as you know has been completed so a 4.7 mile segment of the rail trail extends from the Wayland library to Jones Road in Waltham and that was completed in 2019. now the state seeks to complete the rail trail from the Wayland depot to the Sudbury Wayland town line thus connecting the paved path with the recently paved rail trail in Sudbury the work hopefully will be done by the end of 2027. so this article concerns easements so as many of you know easements are legal agreements granting temporary or permanent rights to use a portion of a property owner's land for construction related activities while the owner retains land ownership the beneficiary for example a contractor or municipality gains access for tasks like storing materials operating equipment or utility installation easements of course are used for other purposes but in the municipal world that's typically their role the easements here would last about five years it's it's anticipated that the project will be done long before five years but that's typically the time period for municipal uh easements like these so the construction work planned by the state would include installation of a bridge over the Sudbury river just west of Russell's garden center so in order to complete the rail trail the state seeks to require a permanent easement for a nominal fee under 100 dollars regarding land currently owned by the new owners of the Wayland town center NP Wayland LLC the state has asked the town to acquire the easement from NP Wayland LLC to to the extent that the their land runs through its property NP Wayland LLC is agreeable to this plan the state also seeks temporary easements for construction purposes on about 17,847 square feet of land near the Wayland depot so a handout will be available at town meeting that includes the mass DOT plans I'm happy to walk through the plans now sharing my screen to discuss the plans and some of the plans that you will find in the plans there is a link in the description of the slide if you want to check out some of the plans and the plans that I'm going to share with you to help you understand more about the plans if the particular parcels if anyone would like also the in the warrant you'll see a link that you can look at the plans yourself if you like and they out they outline the different parcels that are involved thank you Tom I'm looking for any questions if not I have a couple here That's exactly the direction that it's going. Are there cost estimates? The only cost estimates would be just traditional legal costs to deal with these easements. The state actually asked us to deal with the easements of non-town properties like Russell's and others. But we told the state that it's their project, that we're very hesitant to do that, and if we agreed to do it, we need an assurance that the town would be reimbursed. So to answer the question, no significant cost. Okay. And the last question I have before me, who will pay, the Commonwealth or the town? The Commonwealth will be paying for the construction of the rail track. The Commonwealth plans to pay the legal fees to deal with the easement issues. Okay. Looking again at the audience, anybody have any questions? And again, I remind you, we can come back to any of these articles after we complete other questions. And I'm looking at Wacom. I get the sense that they're broadcasting now, that it's not that they're probably recording, but it says on the thing that they're broadcasting. So hopefully we have a larger audience watching as well. Okay. All right, Tom. And lastly, we move on to Article 1738, liquor license and cryptocurrency. Bill Whitney again. Thank you. Article 17 is a proposal seeking town meeting approval for the town to petition the general court with a home rule petition that would allow the town to issue 10 additional liquor licenses. Under state law, the state legislature controls the number of liquor licenses that any municipality may wish to issue. We presently have 14 licenses, all of which have been issued. We are seeking an additional 10 licenses through the general court. And so we're seeking town meeting authorization to file this home rule petition for consideration by the general court. We do so as having a liquor license tends to be quite important for full service restaurants to have. And so in order to accommodate that, we'd like to have the ability to issue additional licenses. Bill, I have a question. Yes. This article is listed as being under the abbreviated presentation procedure. Do you anticipate any controversy with this article? I don't know how many teetotalers we have in town, Mary. I don't know. Fair enough. We have not heard anything as yet. But obviously, as you have explained, to the extent that someone has a concern, I suppose it could always be brought out. Yeah. Okay. Fair enough. I just like to anticipate when we start deviating off course. Judy, I see your hand up. Thank you. So, Bill, my question is a 14 current liquor license. Who are they? I mean, it's not listed in the warrant. It's just a curiosity. Well, Judy, funny you should ask. You have it at your fingertips? I do not, sadly. That may be a question that's asked. Let's see how well he does naming them all. Well, I don't have personal experience, you understand. You haven't frequented all 14 establishments. Yeah. And I will, maybe I'll do a live telecast from one. I will get that to you, Judy, and I will be prepared to address that at town meeting. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. Mike? Yeah. Does this include liquor stores? That was my question, too. It's strictly for on-premise consumption. Thank you, Mike, for asking that question. I should have mentioned that. So it doesn't do Lavin's or things like that. It's just- Yeah. That's correct. Bell's and 121 or whatever. Yeah. Restaurant. Great. Yeah. Because I could see some potential concern if you're in one of the few liquor stores in town, and there might be four others opening. But I understand now. Thank you. Thank you. Are there- Yes, go ahead, Carol. Yeah. Bill, I hope you don't mind if I add one thing. The reason that we are applying for this is that what makes a town attractive to potential new businesses coming into town, particularly if they are in this restaurant serving business, is if there's a liquor license available. So by not having any full service liquor licenses available, a business that may be considering locating to Whalen would pass us by for another community that does have one. So we really do need to have some liquor licenses available to issue. So for instance, Carol, the new thing that's being built in Whalen Town Center, Turan, is that what it's called? They could not get a liquor license right now because we're out of them to issue? You're talking the Turan that's going into the Whole Foods? Correct. They actually, I believe, got our last two full liquor licenses. Okay. That's an example. Which is why it's important for the board to say we now need to apply at the recommendation, obviously, of the town manager. Yeah. Okay. Any other questions on that? If not, then, Bill, you can move to the cryptocurrency, Article 38. Sure. If I may, Irina, Article 31 is another liquor license item, a conversion of wine and malt licenses. So if the town were to accept MGL Chapter 138, Section 12D, it enables communities to permit the conversion of a wine or malt license to a full liquor license. Anticipating Judy's question, we have one such license in Whalen, and that is Mel's Commonwealth Cafe. But if there were future licenses to be issued, that would be the case. With respect to the cryptocurrency item, this seeks to ban the use or the location of cryptocurrency ATMs. Okay. And it's not just in Whalen. It's in the town. There has been a lot of concern about abuse by them, people getting calls saying, you know, your relative is in jail or your check didn't clear for something and you need to go to a crypto ATM and make a deposit there. And once those funds are gone, they are virtually untraceable. And so the idea is to prevent any such abuse for residents of the town by banning them in the town of Whalen. Okay. Are there any questions on that or any of the other articles that we have covered as well as the moderator's discussion earlier on? I hope the town meeting goes as flawlessly and as quickly as possible. I mean, this is why we do it, to be able to answer questions ahead of time. I hope people will not only watch the broadcast but also go on to the town website or to the league website to watch this and get informed before. But we're trying to streamline town meeting but yet also address people's concerns and issues. So thank you all for attending. Thank you for those who are listening. Thank you for those who will continue to listen and mostly for those who really volunteer in our town government. in our town government and and help help us do the job for what is a large budget these days way different than when i was a select person we've come a long way from those years so and uh please come to town meeting on monday uh starting at 6 30 because we have the privilege of being in a place where we are our democracy is us and we can really make a difference and our voices can be heard so on behalf of the league thank you very much and hope to see you on monday thanks arena thank you thank you