The Board of Public Works reviewed a significant change involving the MWRA long-term water supply project at its Feb. 25 meeting.
Director of Public Works Tom Holder reported that the capital improvement plan (CIP) request language was being revised and updated after the town learned it was not accepted for Clean Water State Revolving Fund 0% loan.
The State Revolving Fund (SRF) provides affordable financing options to improve water infrastructure, ensure compliance with federal and state water quality standards, support safe drinking water, implement watershed and stormwater management, address climate resiliency, and administer the community septic loan program.
Town officials had been told over the prior 18 months that the project, which is tied to PFAS mitigation, was aligned with the intent of the 0% loan program and was expected to score highly. Holder said the town estimated its application would receive a rating of about 538, but the plan posted by the Clean Water Trust showed Wayland with a rating of 231. The town has filed notice of intent to appeal and will provide testimony March 24, he said. Holder added that he had discussed alternative financing with town officials and that staff were preparing a conventional borrowing finance option in case the appeal is unsuccessful.
Chair George Uveges said the warrant language for Article HH must be revised to reflect that the SRF loan is now uncertain and that an alternative wording for a conventional borrowing be prepared.
The board reviewed updated CIP requests after Holder said operating and capital budgets had previously been voted on but the CIP requests were held until funding sources were finalized. Holder said he revised the CIPs to match the finance department’s identified funding sources, including general fund borrowing, enterprise borrowing, and limited use of free cash where specified in the capital budget.
Board members also raised concerns about how certain projects were categorized within the CIP structure. Uveges objected to listing the proposed $2 million high school septic project as a DPW project, noting the board had previously voted that it should not be characterized that way. Holder said he communicated that position to the Finance Committee and the Capital Improvement Planning Committee (CIPC), but the project remained under DPW in the capital listing.
Carol Martin, attending as Select Board liaison, said the town has been shifting management of construction projects to departments with relevant expertise and that DPW has capacity to manage construction even when it is not the sponsoring department. Holder said DPW frequently manages construction-related work and cited wastewater and field projects as examples.
Members discussed the timing of borrowing for the ongoing water main replacement program. Uveges raised timing concerns, noting that if borrowing occurs in November 2026, the first debt service payment would likely occur in November 2027. He said that could push meaningful rate impacts into FY28 rather than FY27. He suggested that timing be clarified in the warrant, so rate impacts are not misunderstood. Martin said the board could request the Finance Committee include that context in its capital write-ups.
After discussion of funding sources, loan assumptions and project classifications, the board voted unanimously to approve the updated CIP project requests as presented and amended.
Holder said a public forum on the long-term water supply project is scheduled for April 7 at the Council on Aging and will be recorded by WayCAM. He said engineering consulting firm Kleinfelder would prepare a presentation for board review in March, followed by a question-and-answer session at the forum.
The board also reviewed a midyear forecast for the FY26 water enterprise fund. Holder reported staff projected a small operating surplus but expected debt service to exceed budget by about $57,000. One significant variable remains the cost of water purchased through the MWRA emergency connection. Holder estimated the expense at approximately $160,000 while he awaits final figures.
On the revenue side, the forecast included about $85,000 in additional revenue tied to quarterly billing changes. Holder said more frequent meter readings will improve reconciliation between water produced and water metered, an important metric for MassDEP reporting and MWRA accountability.
Holder also reported that metered consumption from July through January increased about 12% compared with the same period the previous year. He said the increase cannot be attributed entirely to new meters but reflects a measurable change.
Uveges presented a rough estimate of how a projected 27% water rate increase could affect municipal departments. He said applying that percentage across current usage levels would increase town water costs by roughly $159,421 annually, though he emphasized the figures were preliminary, and that finance officials had previously advised departments to budget for a significant rate increase.
DPW Superintendent Joe Doucette told the board the FY26 snow and ice account is projected to run between $400,000 and $500,000 over budget. He said the most recent storm alone cost more than $100,000. Uveges noted snow and ice is an account that may be overspent and later funded through transfer or town meeting action. Martin said finance officials would recommend a funding approach later in the fiscal year.
Michael Wegerbauer updated the board on the municipal trash pickup study tied to the transfer station. He said the evaluation committee selected BCLW, a Massachusetts-based consulting firm, and the next step is refining scope, including evaluating a hybrid system that could combine coordinated pickup with continued transfer station operations and reviewing how comparable towns fund similar programs.
