Voters Pass Easements, Debt for West Street Improvements

Among the items approved during the first half of Subsequent Town Meeting on Tuesday night was funding that will pave the way for construction to begin next year on West Street.

First on Article 7, Town Meeting voters approved 116 easements on 104 properties in town that will cost $178,210. Those easements were necessary to move forward with the long-awaited construction project that includes 1.9 miles of roadwork.

Article 8, meanwhile, asked voters to authorize close to $1 million in debt for the West Street project. That amount is the local share while the state picks up the majority of the tab. The article passed by a 140-1 tally.

The current plan is to advertise the project at the end of January, allowing for a late spring or early summer construction timeframe.

A motion was made to amend the article to remove $75,000 to pay for installing decorative traffic lights that match the other signals in the area. That motion failed, and the article was funded in full.

Additional Articles Approved

The evening began with reports from Reading Municipal Light Department, Superintendent of Schools John Doherty, and Library Trustee David Hutchinson who updated voters on the library building project.

The Capital Improvement Program was approved in Article 3, benefits for retirees were passed in Article 4, there were no payments from the previous year that needed to be approved so Article 5 was postponed, and the disposal of several pieces of equipment was approved by voters as Article 6 passed with ease.

Following discussion on the West Street project, debt was authorized for sewer improvements in Article 10 and an amended budget was passed in Article 11.

Closing out the night before a vote to adjourn for the evening took place was Article 12, which banned billboards in town.

The final three articles on the warrant, including a potential moratorium on medical marijuana, will be addressed on Thursday night.