Warrant in Plain English: 2025 Annual Town Meeting

Corrected and updated April 26, 2025

At Annual Town Meeting Saturday, May 3, voters will be asked to approve 44 articles. About half require spending taxpayer dollars or a transfer of town funds to pay for town services and improvements, while the rest propose changes to town bylaws meant to encourage commercial development, protect the environment, or conserve the town’s character.

On the following pages we explain each in everyday language, including—when less than obvious—the consequences of voting “yes” or “no.” For financial articles, we’ve highlighted their cost, the source of the dollars that will pay for them, who will manage their expenditure, and whether its passage affects your taxes. While it’s up to the Select Board to decide which articles are in the warrant, some are added at the request of a town official or board, as we have noted.

You’ll find the full text of each article in the Town Meeting booklet, which also includes the reports of the Finance Committee, the Capital Planning and Investment Committee, and the Community Preservation Committee. Meeting attendees can pick up a copy when they sign in at Cronin Auditorium on May 3. But you can also read or download the booklet ahead of the meeting at the town website—or ask for a copy to be mailed to you.

To find the booklet online, go to www.harvard-ma.gov and select Annual Town Meeting & Election>Town meeting booklet with warrant click here.

The warrant booklet contains the town counsel-approved wording of each article and whether it’s been recommended by the Finance Committee and Select Board. For help with terms unique to municipal government, look for an explanation in our “Glossary of municipal lingo, which appears elsewhere in this week’s paper.

Readers should also be aware that the language of an article and sometimes its cost and source of funds can be altered when the motion for its adoption is read at Town Meeting. The motions themselves can be amended, so you’ll need to pay attention.

The meeting’s proceedings are conducted by Town Moderator Bill Barton. If you plan to speak or legislate or simply wish to follow the action as each article is considered, the Press recommends you read “Town Meeting Conduct and Procedures” prepared by the League of Women Voters of Harvard and available at the League’s website, lwvharvard.org. Click Local Government>Town Meeting> Conduct and Procedures.

Even more valuable is the concise summary of Town Meeting procedures on pages 3 and 31 of this year’s town meeting booklet which provides additional detail on articles, main motions, subsidiary motions, including amendments, and the order in which they are debated and voted.

Article 1 – Annual reports

Vote required: Majority

This article, an annual formality, asks voters to hear reports from the Select Board, School Committee, and any other boards that wish to speak. A “yes” vote opens the door for any board or committee to step forward and tell the town of its activities and accomplishments over the past year.

The Harvard Town Charter requires the Select Board to report on the state of the town. This report, the charter says, should describe the progress made by the board in achieving its goals, a summary of the town’s financial position, economic development and capital projects, and “any other items that will impact the Town within the next several years.”

Article 2 – Pay bills of prior fiscal years

Amount requested: $2,937.88
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Four-fifths

The town has two invoices left unpaid at the end 2024. Both are owed to its provider of long-term disability insurance for town employees. The total amount due is $2,937.88

Requested by the finance director. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 3 – Inflation Reduction Act rebate funding—solar

Amount requested: $7,000
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

This article asks the town’s approval to use $7,000 of free cash to hire a tax accountant to file the necessary Internal Revenue Service documents to receive reimbursement under the federal Inflation Reduction Act for the solar panels recently installed on the Council on Aging building on Lancaster County Road. In 2023 the town voted to approve $170,000 to install the solar panels, and the Inflation Reduction Act is expected to provide a 30% rebate, or $51,000.

Finance Director Jared Mullane told the Press that Town Hall staff does not have the expertise necessary to file these documents, and it is typical for towns to hire outside consultants to do this type of work.

If received, the money would be expended by the finance director, with the approval of the town administrator.

Requested by the finance director. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 4 – Fund school grant deficit

Amount requested: $15,616.26
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

An ESSER grant was used to pay an educator’s salary in fiscal 2022, as allowed by the grant. But a summer payout for the salary overdrew the grant account. Before the error could be corrected, the time covered by the grant ended. The School Department acknowledged the accounting error, which took place during the transition in its business office.

Requested by the finance director. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 5 – School technology reimbursement

Amount requested: $112,968.75
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

During COVID-19 the schools incurred extra technology costs related to the pandemic, such as additional software licenses and MacBooks for remote teaching and learning. Chris Boyle, the schools’ director of technology, learned the federal government was reimbursing such costs, so he applied to the Federal Emergency Connectivity Fund and succeeded in getting $112,968.75 in reimbursement. But, because Harvard is an independent school district, the money was paid to the town instead of the schools and became part of the town’s free cash certified for 2024. This article, if approved, would return the money to the schools’ Devens Revolving Account to cover future technology costs.

Requested by the School Committee. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 6 – School rental receipts transfer

Amount requested: $42,980.88
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

At last year’s Fall Town Meeting, voters approved a School Building Rental Revolving Account to hold the money various groups pay to use the school buildings on weekends or after school hours. The schools use that money to pay related costs, such as heating, electricity, and overtime pay for custodians. For more than a year, the rental money has gone to the town rather than the schools. But no money could be transferred to the new school account until free cash for 2024 was certified. Approval of this article would transfer that year’s rental money to the new revolving school account when it is created July 1.

Requested by the School Committee. Recommended by Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 7 – Amendment for engineering to complete environmental permitting on Ayer Road project

Amount requested: $15,000
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

A year-long reconstruction of Ayer Road from the Route 2 interchange to the town line is scheduled to begin in 2026. It will add six crosswalks and a walking-biking path on the post office side of the road. The intersection at Ayer and Lancaster County roads will be eliminated, leaving only the Gebo Lane entrance and exit to Ayer Road. The total cost is estimated at $12 million, with the federal government paying for about 80% of the project and the state about 20%.

The town, however, is responsible for funding the design phase of the project. This article would provide $15,000 to pay for some additional environmental engineering and permits necessary for the project.

Recommended by the Select Board and by the Finance Committee.

Article 8 – Feasibility study and preliminary concept development for public works and fire department

Amount requested: $49,000
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

Last year Town Meeting voted to approve a $9.8 million project to renovate the Department of Public Works facility on Depot Road. The project includes replacing the mechanic’s garage and pole barn, and renovating the connector building, which houses the department’s offices. The connector building renovation would include men’s and women’s lockers, a unisex wheelchair-accessible bathroom, and office for the director, an administrative assistant, and the mechanic. The six-bay garage, used mainly for vehicle storage, would remain largely as it is now with a few minor renovations.

But after test borings on the site and at the Transfer Station revealed buried solid waste from the town’s old landfill, the Select Board voted to pause the project at its Dec. 3 meeting. Town Administrator Dan Nason also told the board at that meeting that he had a problem with the renovation design. He said it included no additional garage space, and the department already had vehicles that must be kept outside or garaged at the school. Now that solid waste had been found on the eastern side of the salt shed, the ability to expand the garage became more limited. He also said there was no space for future additional staff, and he was worried about what sort of underground monitoring the state’s Department of Environmental Protection will require at the site that might impact the current design. There is no timeline for that agency’s decisions, so DEP could require changes after construction is completed.

Nason told the Press he asked for this article to look into the feasibility of a combined DPW and Fire-EMS campus in another location. A new $20 million fire station is on the town’s capital plan for fiscal 2027. Nason said the combined facility solution could save the town money in areas such as shared common spaces, site costs, paving, and utilities. It would also untangle the DPW renovation from the landfill problem.

The feasibility study would include engineering and design services to determine space and access requirements and cost-saving opportunities for a shared DPW and Fire-EMS facility, as well as a needs analysis for the Fire-EMS Department.

Requested by the Select Board. The Finance Committee voted April 8 to take no action and to refer the request to the Capital Planning and Investment Committee. As of April 8, CPIC had not seen or reviewed the request.

Article 9 – Transfer from free cash to the stabilization account

Amount requested: $229,953
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

Harvard’s capital planning bylaw requires that whenever the balance of the town’s General Stabilization Fund, as of July 1, falls below 5% of the preceding year’s omnibus budget, free cash must be used to restore it. Finance Director Jared Mullane has calculated that a transfer of approximately $229,953 will be needed to bring the fund to the $1,493,668 balance the bylaw requires to start fiscal 2026.

Requested by the Finance Committee. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 10 – Transfer from certified free cash to the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund

Amount requested: $990,123
Source of money: Free cash
Vote required: Majority

The Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund is Harvard’s savings account for capital projects that cost less than $500,000. The fund gets its dollars from free cash, which is money left unspent and unrestricted from the prior fiscal year.

Harvard’s capital planning bylaw, passed in 2010, requires the Select Board to place an article before Town Meeting before the end of each fiscal year to transfer whatever remains of the prior year’s free cash to the capital fund. The current fiscal year is 2025; the prior fiscal year—the source of this year’s free cash—is 2024.

This article fulfills the capital bylaw’s requirement for fiscal 2025. If it passes, the finance director will transfer the balance of fiscal 2024 free cash to the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund.

Once free cash has been transferred to the capital fund, it takes a two-thirds vote of Town Meeting to draw from it. Paying for capital projects with capital savings reduces the amount the town must borrow, which helps restrain the growth of property taxes. Article 15 lists the 13 projects that the Capital Planning and Investment Committee has recommended for fiscal 2026 using money in the capital fund.

According to Finance Director Jared Mullane, the balance in the capital fund as of Dec. 31, 2024, was $2.7 million. Passage of this article will increase the CSIF balance to approximately $3.7 million, more than enough to cover requested expenditures from the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund in fiscal 2026. See Articles 15 and 16.

Requested by the Finance Committee. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 11 – Establish a special education reserve fund

Amount requested: $90,638
Source of money: Cable Access Fund
Vote required: Majority

The Harvard Media Cooperative (formerly Harvard Cable TV) draws money from three sources to pay for its operations. The largest share comes from Spectrum, Harvard’s cable TV provider. The amount is set by the terms of Spectrum’s 10-year contract with the town. But the town and schools also provide an annual subsidy.

The $90,638 due from Spectrum for fiscal 2026, which begins July 1, currently sits in the town’s cable access fund. Passage of this article transfers the money from there to a receipts-reserved-for-cable account, where dollars are available to the Harvard Media Cooperative Committee to pay for personnel and the cost of providing its services to the town and schools.

Requested by the Select Board. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 12 – Omnibus budget

Amount requested: $35,131,266
Source of money: Taxation
Vote required: Majority

Article 12 is Harvard’s omnibus budget, the amounts the Select Board and Finance Committee recommend be spent in the coming fiscal year to deliver vital municipal and educational services—from Town Hall departments and school classrooms to roads and building maintenance, from teachers and police officers to librarians and MART drivers.

It’s not uncommon for Town Meeting attendees to approve the annual budget in a matter of minutes, sometimes without a single question or comment. In past years the moderator has sometimes walked attendees through the five-page spreadsheet one page at a time, but the additional time rarely leads to further discussion.

The first thing to know about next fiscal year’s $35.1 million omnibus budget is that the amount that property taxes and new growth can provide in fiscal 2026 is not enough to pay for it. Town Meeting must pass Article 12 but how much of it is implemented depends on what voters decide at Town Election May 6.

At the ballot box, Question 1 will offer voters three choices:

1. Vote “yes” for both Question 1A (also known as Tier 1) and Question 1B (Tier 2) to raise the additional $1.37 million needed to pay for the entire budget

2. Vote “yes” for Question 1A only to raise $939,839, a lesser amount that would allow town departments, such as DPW, police, and fire, with enough money to provide the same level of service next fiscal year that they provide today. Schools, however, would be forced to make cuts and would struggle to maintain current student services and classes.

3. Vote “no” for both Questions 1A and 1B, which would limit expenditures to the 2.5% revenue increase plus new growth allowed by Proposition 2½ and force town departments and the schools to slice $1.37 million from the budget, resulting in reduced hours at the library and Council on Aging, loss of up to 11.5 full-time positions at the schools, and reductions to student programs and athletics.

It’s important to understand that a vote for Article 12 is not a vote for an override; that will be decided at the polls.

According to Town Administrator Dan Nason, the motion for Article 12 as well as the article itself can be amended, as long as the change does not increase the size of the budget. A voter may amend the article or motion to reduce, transfer, or eliminate any line item in the budget. If the amendment passes, the amendment would lower the $35.1 million sticker price of the omnibus budget, but not the amounts in Questions 1A and 1B.

You’ll find further discussion of Article 12 and Question 1 elsewhere in this issue of the Press. (See “Town asks voters to support Prop 2½ override,”) The Town Meeting booklet is also an essential reference. The line-by-line budget is printed on pages 37 through 41, and specifies how the recommended $35.1 million budget, if approved and funded, would be spent by each town department. The two rightmost columns of the table show which departments would benefit—and by how much—from passage of Tier 1 and Tier 2.

At whatever level the budget is funded, the money will be spent by town department heads and committee chairs, with the approval of the Select Board and town administrator, and paid for with fiscal 2026 tax dollars and other town revenues—with or without an override. The amount appropriated for education is managed by the superintendent of schools, who has the flexibility to adjust how it’s spent as priorities shift during the school year—as long as spending does not exceed the total budgeted amount.

If Town Meeting rejects Article 12, the Select Board must return to Town Meeting before July 1 with an alternative proposal, or ask the state for authority to continue operating.

The fiscal 2026 budget was prepared by the town administration, Finance Committee, and Select Board. The Select Board, Finance Committee, and School Committee recommend the total amount of Article 12, which requires passage of Questions 1A and 1B. Voting for both questions assures that if 1B fails, Question 1A could gain the majority required to pass it.

Article 13 – Performance-based wage adjustments

Amount requested: $69,830
Source of money: Taxation
Vote required: Majority

The omnibus budget includes only cost-of-living increases for the town’s 36 employees who are not covered by union or individual contracts. So the Personnel Board recommends this amount as a pool of money to provide merit raises for those employees. Most of these employees work for the library, Town Hall, and the Council on Aging. If the article passes, each department head will be able to allot merit raises up to 3% to employees who met or exceeded performance goals in the past year. Since 2018, this merit-pay system has replaced the step-and-grade pay scale for these employees.

This expenditure is in addition to and independent of the $35.1 million omnibus budget.

Requested by the Select Board. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 14 – Establish and fund a pension and OPEB stabilization fund

Amount requested: $200,000
Source of money: Taxation (requires override vote on Question 2 at ballot box)
Vote required: Two-thirds

Finance Director Jared Mullane proposed this article that would create a new stabilization fund to help pay for future increases in pension contributions as well as money to be used for other post-
employment benefits (OPEB). Mullane has also suggested an initial annual taxpayer contribution of $200,000, starting in fiscal 26, which would cost the average single-
family homeowner about $96 a year.

Mullane told the Finance Committee at its Feb. 5 meeting that the town’s payments into the Worcester Regional Retirement System, one of the 105 pension systems for nonteacher municipal employees in the state, have recently been increasing by 10% each year. He said the town has no control over which system it is assigned to. This year’s 15% increase, he said, amounted to $236,587, outpacing the town’s new growth revenue from last year. Creating a fund for the purpose of paying for these annual increases would take some pressure off the budget, he said.

Mullane told the Press the account would be used primarily to help pay for annual increases to the town’s pension fund contribution, and it would likely be emptied each year to cover those increases. After 2035, when the employee pension fund is scheduled to be fully financed, this account could be used to help fund OPEB increases, in some combination with the town’s annual contributions to its OPEB trust fund. Mullane said contributions to the fund would be invested.

If this article passes, the increase in taxes would require voters to pass an override at the ballot box on May 6, separate from the budget override. Once the fund is established, the Select Board would control any further increases or decreases to taxpayer funding. Increases would be limited to 2.5%.

Requested by the finance director. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 15 – Capital Planning and Investment Committee recommended expenditures

Amount requested: $1,936,205
Source of money: Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund
Vote required for each expenditure: Two-thirds

Each year the Capital Planning and Investment Committee reviews requests from departments and committees for purchases of equipment or studies that cost more than $20,000 or that have a useful life greater than five years. Large projects, such as the new elementary school, are typically paid for with excluded debt, but small projects can be paid for with savings in the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund.

The 13 projects listed below will be paid for with money in the capital fund, which had a balance of $2.7 million on Dec. 31, 2024. Finance Director Jared Mullane estimates that passage of Article 10 would add $990,123 in free cash to the account. If all 13 capital projects listed below (totaling $1,936,205) are approved, the capital fund would be left with a balance of approximately $1,753,918, and if Article 16 (debt payment from the capital fund) passes, this amount would be lowered to $1,693,630.

Requested and recommended by the Capital Planning and Investment Committee; recommended by the Select Board. The Finance Committee voted to make no recommendation.

Article 15-1 – Road maintenance and repairs

Amount requested: $200,000

The town receives about $350,000 each year in Chapter 90 highway funds from the state, but that grant, which has been level-funded for over 15 years, does not keep pace with the cost of materials needed to pave the town’s roads. The DPW director has been requesting an additional $200,000 each year for the past five years to continue with the department’s capital plan for road maintenance, updated annually and based on visual inspection and pavement preservation.

Requested by the DPW director. If it passes, the money will be spent by the DPW director with the approval of the Select Board.

Article 15-2 – Roadside mower

Amount requested: $175,000

The DPW’s roadside mower is used to keep brush from narrowing the roads. The current mower, a 2010 Kubota, was due to be replaced in two years, but the previous director, Tim Kilhart, said the mower broke down frequently, repairs are getting more expensive, and the mower spends a lot of time out of service while waiting for parts. A heavy-duty truck was due to be replaced this year, but Kilhart said the state is imposing new environmental regulations on heavy-duty trucks that would make it impossible to buy one until 2027. Since purchasing a truck this year is not an option, Kilhart asked that the truck and the mower be switched on the capital schedule. Kilhart said he received a quote for $200,000, but the company is offering the town $25,000 for the trade-in of the existing mower.

Requested by the DPW director. If it passes, the money will be spent by the DPW director with the approval of the Select Board.

Article 15-3 – Fire alarm receiving system

Amount requested: $69,765

The fire alarm receiving system is used to alert dispatch in the event of a fire in one of the town’s municipal buildings. Chief Rick Sicard said he was recently informed by the vendor that parts for the main control unit are no longer available. He said the vendor is moving away from the old technology to a computer-based unit. If the old unit fails, Sicard said, it would leave the town’s municipal buildings unprotected.

Requested by the fire chief. If it passes, the money will be spent by the fire chief with the approval of the Select Board.

Article 15-4 – New ambulance

Amount requested: $300,000

As a result of the closing of Nashoba Valley Medical Center, the town received a $250,000 grant from the state last year for EMS capital improvements. EMS Coordinator Jason Cotting is asking to use the funds to replace the existing ambulance two years earlier than scheduled. The existing ambulance would be kept as a backup.

Cotting said the cost of a new ambulance, stretcher, and the medical equipment needed on the ambulance is $500,000. He is planning to use $50,000 of the grant to upgrade the ambulance service’s licensure to ALS-Advanced level. The remaining $200,000 will be put toward the new ambulance, but $300,000 more is needed to pay for the remainder. The grant funds must be spent by the end of 2025.

Requested by the EMS Coordinator. If it passes, the money will be spent by the Fire Chief with the approval of the Select Board.

Article 15-5 – Replacement of radio repeaters

Amount requested: $245,000

The Fire Department uses a radio repeater to boost the signal of two-way radio communications between emergency personnel, and while it uses only one, it has two more for backup purposes. Chief Sicard said that without a repeater, the department would have to rely on the station air horn for emergency communications. The existing repeaters are 14 years old (useful life is expected to be 10 years), and they are no longer supported by the manufacturer, making parts difficult to find.

Requested by the fire chief. If it passes, the money will be spent by the fire chief with the approval of the Select Board.

Requested by the Select Board. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 15-6 – Field facility upgrades

Amount requested: $50,000

For the past two years, the Park and Recreation Commission has asked for CPIC funds for field upgrades, including irrigation, signage, and parking lots. Signage is currently needed at five fields, and the parking lots at both Ryan Land and Depot Road fields are in dire need of fixing, according to Recreation Director Anne McWaters.

Requested by the recreation director. If it passes, the money will be spent by the recreation director with the approval of the Park and Recreation Commission.

Article 15-7 – Land acquisition

Town Administrator Dan Nason told the Press this article will be replaced by Article 17, which includes a vote for both Select Board permission to purchase the land and to buy the land with CPIC funds.

Article 15-8 – Police server and computer upgrade

Amount requested: $26,440

The Police Department hopes to replace its server, eight personal computers, and eight monitors. The requested amount includes the cost for setup and software installations. All the current equipment will be at least 5 years old by fiscal 2026, with some of it substantially older. According to the department’s request, extending warranties beyond five years is cost-prohibitive.

Requested by the police chief. If it passes, the money will be spent by the police chief with the approval of the Select Board.

Article 15-9 – School athletic equipment and field improvement

Amount requested: $35,000

The school district hopes to improve some sports equipment, including scoring tables, benches, and pitching machines for baseball and softball, and also to improve some fields. The goal is to bring the fields up to the quality that is expected when the town hosts games.

Requested by the superintendent of schools. If it passes, the money will be spent by the superintendent with the approval of the School Committee.

Article 15-10 – Bromfield School exterior doors

Amount requested: $38,000

The money would be used to replace four exterior doors. The doors are hard to close securely, creating a safety issue; and, even when closed, they leave gaps that waste heating and cooling energy.

Requested by the superintendent of schools. If it passes, the money will be spent by the superintendent with the approval of the School Committee.

Requested by the recreation director. If it passes, the money will be spent by the recreation director with the approval of the Park and Recreation Commission.

Article 15-11 – Bromfield School flooring

Amount requested: $130,000

This expenditure would continue replacing the old floors in Bromfield, a project that started three years ago with new flooring for the halls and common areas. The old flooring is beyond its life expectancy; tiles are cracking and coming loose from the subfloor. If approved, the money requested in this article will replace flooring in about half the classrooms. After that, one more year of work should complete the project in fiscal 2027. The new flooring has a life expectancy of 20 years and does not need waxing.

This expenditure was requested by the superintendent of schools. The money would be spent by the superintendent with the approval of the School Committee.

Article 15-12 – Schools: Classroom sound mitigation

Amount requested: $44,000

In two classrooms on the lower level of the Bromfield School, the exposed heating and ventilation ducts create a noisy environment that interferes with learning. Sound-absorbing panels on the ceiling and walls to cover the ducts are the proposed solution.

Requested by the superintendent of schools. If it passes, the money will be spent by the superintendent with the approval of the School Committee.

Article 15-13 – Cronin Auditorium seat replacement

Amount requested: $183,000

A number of seats in the Cronin Auditorium are broken, creating a safety hazard; and many more need new upholstery. Last year, the schools proposed a smaller project to repair and reupholster some of the seats. But CPIC did not approve that project, judging it a stopgap measure. Moreover, those upgrades would not have addressed the issues raised in the 2023 report from the Commission on Disabilities. To comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the auditorium needs at least eight designated wheelchair spaces and also some aisle seats with removable or folding armrests. The fiscal 2026 proposal is to remove and replace all the seats, while also making the changes required by the ADA.

Requested by the superintendent of schools. If it passes, the money will be spent by the superintendent with the approval of the School Committee.

Article 16 – Capital Planning and Investment Committee debt payment

Amount requested: $60,288
Source of money: Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund
Vote required: Two-thirds

The Capital Planning and Investment Committee assumed debt payments for money borrowed to purchase a fire truck and DPW equipment in fiscal 2011, and later for a $340,000 municipal water system upgrade. Principal and interest due on those two projects in fiscal 2026 is $60,288.

Requested by the Capital Planning and Investment Committee. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 17 – Purchase property for recreation purposes

Amount requested: $440,000
Source of money: Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund
Vote required: Two-thirds

This article will give the Select Board permission to purchase a 6-acre parcel on Old Mill Road from a private landowner, suitable for the potential development of a multipurpose athletic field. The land is adjacent to Harvard Park on the northwest side with a small amount of frontage on Old Mill Road. The landowners have agreed to accept the assessed value of the parcel, $415,000; the additional $25,000 would cover legal and surveying fees. Funding will come from the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund.

A 2023 athletic field needs assessment by Gale Associates identified a field deficit in Harvard. The opportunity to purchase this piece of land came after a search by the Park and Recreation Commission and the Open Space Commission for possible sites to help make up that deficit. This was the only viable property that resulted from that search.

Several Old Mill Road residents have expressed opposition to the plan to acquire this property as well as to the plan to swap a nearby parcel of conservation land known as the Stone Land for land behind Hildreth Elementary School to build another athletic field on the Stone Land. In addition, in a meeting last fall, the Park and Recreation Commission voted to authorize the creation of a conceptual plan for a pump track in the Harvard Park woods. Old Mill Road residents were upset because the item was not called out in the commission’s meeting agenda.

During an April 15 meeting where Recreation Director Anne McWaters presented summaries of the commission’s upcoming warrant articles, Old Mill Road resident Pablo Carbonell said there had been a lack of transparency in the land purchase process. He asked if this was just another “stepping stone” to development into the woods of Harvard Park and of the Stone Land, and said that repercussions of the commission’s proposed projects should be discussed in advance with the neighborhood.

Carbonell also said the commission had not presented alternatives for solving the shortage of playing fields in town. He mentioned the options of renting fields at Devens and using artificial turf on the new field planned for the interior of the McCurdy Track (see Article 22) to extend available playing time on that field.

McWaters responded that the commission was not trying to hide anything, and it disclosed the address of the proposed land purchase to neighboring residents as soon as it was legally able to. She also said Devens is not a good option for supplementing the town’s playing fields because it requires transportation, and Devens’ fields are difficult to schedule because they are heavily used by other schools and organizations. As for artificial turf, McWaters said it is expensive to install and maintain, poses health and injury risks, and has negative environmental impacts. More information on the health and environmental concerns associated with artificial turf is available on the Park and Recreation website.

If the land is not eventually developed into an athletic field, McWaters said it would become conservation land under the terms of the purchase and sale agreement.

Requested by the recreation director, recommended by the Select Board. The Finance Committee voted to make no recommendation. If it passes, the money will be spent by the Park and Recreation Commission.

Article 18 – Designate Harvard Park as parkland for recreational use

Vote required: Two-thirds

The 33.85 acres of land that constitutes Harvard Park includes McCurdy Track, playing fields, a playground, and walking trails. The land was turned over to the Park and Recreation Commission by the Harvard Park Association in 2002, but the park was never officially designated as “park land” to be used for park and recreation purposes.

This article would officially designate the property as park land, which would make it eligible to receive recreation grants, including a $1 million grant that has already been provisionally approved to help pay for the reconstruction of the McCurdy Track. The award of the grant, which is from the Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Land and Water Conservation Fund, is conditional upon the land’s designation as park land. The grant will also require federal approval.

This article was requested by the Park and Recreation Commission and recommended by the Select Board. The Finance Committee voted to make no recommendation.

Article 19 – Rescind prior borrowing authorizations

Vote required: Majority

When Town Meeting votes to borrow money for a project, the town takes out bonds to pay for project expenses, but those bonds are typically taken out in stages as the project progresses. As a result, when some projects end, the full amount voters authorized the town to borrow has never actually been borrowed.

Such was the case with the old library roof project, completed in fiscal year 2023, and the Hildreth Elementary School Feasibility Study that was done in 2016. Funding for the old library roof was done in two stages. In 2021, the town authorized borrowing of $676,134, but $191,037 was never borrowed. Two years earlier, Town Meeting authorized borrowing $480,000, and $1 was never borrowed (actually 75 cents, according to Finance Director Jared Mullane). Mullane told the Press he wouldn’t normally have bothered with the $1, but he added it to this article since there were other amounts to rescind.

In the case of the HES feasibility study, the Massachusetts School Building Authority reimbursed the town $186,647, and the study came in $36,753 under budget, for a total of $223,400 of unborrowed funds.

This article simply rescinds the authorization to borrow these amounts of money. According to Mullane, taxpayers only pay excluded debt on the funds borrowed, not the funds authorized. This article will have no effect on taxpayers. Mullane said that rescinding unissued authorized debt is important because the total amount of authorized debt is one of the factors considered by the S&P 500 when it assigns bond ratings to towns.

This article was requested by the finance director. Recommended by the Finance Committee and the Select Board.

Article 20 – Community Preservation Committee report

Vote required: Majority

This article invites the Community Preservation Committee to report on the state of Harvard’s Community Preservation Fund and the grants it has approved for fiscal 2025. The report is typically delivered by the CPC chair, currently Stu Sklar. A copy of the report appears on pages 28-29 of the warrant booklet.

The committee has two principal sources of income: the town’s 3% Community Preservation Act surcharge on property taxes—approved by Town Meeting in 2001—plus whatever amount the state chooses to match. Sklar told the Press that the surtax alone will likely add $720,601 to the Community Preservation Fund in fiscal 2026, plus whatever the state kicks in and whatever is left over from the current fiscal year, estimated to be as much as $175,511.

However, an accounting change approved by Mullane last fall resulted in a $813,949 windfall, money that was collected in fiscal 2024, but not spent in the current fiscal year and therefore available for fiscal 2026 projects. Without diving into the math, the result was that when the CPC began planning for the coming fiscal year, it could count on having at least $1,748,849 in its coffers come fiscal 2026.

It’s for this reason the CPC is able to spend $973.338 on the seven projects proposed in Article 21 and make a $600,000 down payment for the reconstruction of McCurdy Track at Harvard Park, as proposed by Article 22. In future years, the committee will also pay for principal and interest on the $2,032,782 that will be borrowed to complete the project.

This article was requested by the Community Preservation Committee. If it passes, the chair of the CPC will present the report. The Finance Committee takes no position on this article; the Select Board recommends it.

Article 21 – Community Preservation Committee recommended acquisitions and projects

Total requested amount: $973,338
Source of money: Fiscal 2026 Community Preservation Fund unspecified reserves
Vote required for each expenditure: Majority

This article, submitted by the Community Preservation Committee, lists the project requests the committee has voted to support in fiscal 2026. The money source is Harvard’s Community Preservation Fund. The fund is replenished each year by money received from the town’s 3% Community Preservation Act property tax surcharge plus matching money provided by the state. But as noted in the entry for Article 20, the fund was a beneficiary this year of a $813,949 windfall, which boosted its balance considerably.

By law, the money a town collects for its Community Preservation Fund must be used to preserve open space and historic sites, and to create recreational facilities and affordable housing. Each year, at least 10% of annual CPA revenue must be spent or set aside for future use in each of these categories.

The Community Preservation Committee voted unanimously to support the seven following projects in fiscal 2026, which begins July 1.

The Finance and Capital Planning and Investment committees do not comment on CPC articles, but the Select Board voted unanimously to support the CPC’s recommendations.

Article 21-1 – Conservation Fund

Amount requested: $500,000

This half-million dollar grant will be deposited in the Conservation Committee’s fund to support future purchases of conservation land. Knowing that at least two purchases are in the works, the committee voted to transfer the funds directly to the commission’s Conservation Fund where it can be used to pursue opportunities without having to return to Town Meeting for an appropriation.

Requested by the Conservation Commission. If it passes, the money will be transferred to the Conservation Fund, whose expenditures are decided and managed by the Conservation Commission.

Article 21-2 – Municipal Affordable Housing Trust

Amount requested: $194,000

The money granted the Municipal Affordable Housing Trust consists of the minimum 10% contribution required by the Community Preservation Act ($94,000) plus another $100,000. In its request for funding, the trust said it would use $50,000 to identify smaller parcels in Harvard suitable for affordable housing and save the rest for use should a target property or other opportunity become available, or for collaborative projects with other organizations such as the Conservation Commission.

Requested by the Municipal Affordable Housing Trust. If it passes, the money will be transferred to the Municipal Affordable Housing Trust whose expenditures are decided and managed by the trust.

Article 21-3 – Shaker Cemetery Restoration

Amount requested: $100,000

These funds would be used to reproduce some missing and damaged metal grave markers as well as some badly damaged marble stone markers in the Shaker Cemetery.

Requested by the Cemetery Commission. If it passes, the money will be transferred to the Cemetery Commission, which will manage expenditures for the project.

Article 21-4 – Old Library windows restoration

Amount requested: $115,000

The windows in the town’s old library on Fairbank Street, currently leased to Fivesparks, are outdated and inefficient. These funds would repair, refurbish, or replace those windows using materials that will adhere to the standards of buildings in the town’s historic district. If the town approves the project it will be eligible for state funding that would reduce the CPC’s expenditure.

Requested by the facilities manager, who will manage expenditures for the project.

Article 21-5 – Town building plaques

Amount requested: $500

These funds would be used to purchase historical plaques for Town Hall, the old library, the library, and Hildreth House. The 9-inch by 12-inch plaques would be affixed to the front of each building.

Requested by the Harvard Historical Commission, which will manage expenditures for the project.

Article 21-6 – Town Hall bond repayment

Amount requested: $43,838

In 2012, the Community Preservation Committee voted to pay the annual principal and interest due on $1 million of the $3.7 million 20-year bond issued that year by the town to pay for the renovation of Town Hall. Last year’s payment was $44,888; this year’s is $43,838.

Requested by the finance director, who will manage the expenditure.

Article 21-7 – Community Preservation Committee administrative fees

Amount requested: $20,000

The Community Preservation Committee requires money for administrative expenses, including annual dues for membership in the Community Preservation Coalition and necessary legal fees. Last year’s request for administrative expenses was $20,500. The expenditure defrays the cost of a part time assistant and other to support the work of the committee, an allowed use of CPA funds.

This expenditure was requested by the Community Preservation Committee. If it passes, the funds will be spent by the committee.

Article 22 – Harvard Park track debt authorization

Amount requested: $2,632,782
Source of money: $2,032,782 excluded debt and a $600,000 transfer from the Community Preservation Fund unspecified reserves
Vote required: Two-thirds

McCurdy Track was built in 2002 and resurfaced in 2014. Recreation Director Anne McWaters told the committee that the track surface now has cracks and undulations where puddles collect. She said the life span of tracks is 20 years, and resurfacing can only be done once, so the track needs to be reconstructed. The field inside the track, which has drainage problems, also needs to be rebuilt. The project would also include restoration of the field events areas. In addition, new amphitheater-type spectator seating would be built, the track would be made ADA accessible, stairs to the lower throwing field would be installed, and a walking path connecting the Harvard Senior Center to Harvard Park would be constructed.

The project would be entirely funded by the CPC, with a $600,000 down payment from this year’s CPC funds and annual payments on a bond to fund the remainder of the project. If Article 18 is approved, designating Harvard Park as official park land, the town could receive a $1 million grant from the Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to apply toward this project. The grant has been provisionally approved, conditional on the park land vote and federal approval.

The funds would be spent under the direction of the recreation director and the Park and Recreation Commission, with approval required for bond repayment each year by the Community Preservation Committee.

Requested by the Community Preservation Committee. Recommended by the Select Board. The Finance Committee voted to make no recommendation.

Article 23 – Sewer, water, ambulance, and Transfer Station enterprise fund budgets

Vote required: Majority

Past Town Meetings created four enterprise funds to manage the operations of the town center sewer and water, the Harvard Ambulance Service, and the Transfer Station. This article sets their budgets for fiscal 2025.

An enterprise fund allows a department or service to operate like a small business. By funding operations through fees instead of taxes, enterprise funds keep pressure off the general fund, which pays for town departments, schools, police, fire, and other expenses consolidated in the annual omnibus operating budget.

The budget of an enterprise fund must balance; the revenues in a given fiscal year must be sufficient to cover the appropriated expenses of an organization’s operation. The budgets of Harvard’s enterprise funds each balance. Note passage of this article appropriates $120,000 to the sewer enterprise fund to subsidize its budget, an amount that is in addition to and independent of the $35.1 million omnibus budget. (See Article 12.)

For additional detail on the budget of each fund, please refer to pages 48 through 50 in the Town Meeting booklet. The table below summarizes the fiscal 2026 budgets

Enterprise budgets for sewer, water, ambulance, and transfer station