Editor’s note: To mark the start of a new year, the Greenfield Recorder is publishing stories about what Franklin County residents can likely expect to see happening in their towns in 2026.
Entering 2026, town officials in Montague, Gill and Erving expect to see continued progress on ongoing infrastructure projects, important Town Meeting votes and continued navigation around health insurance increases for fiscal year 2027.
Montague
Town Administrator Walter Ramsey said that heading into the new year, the town has much to look forward to in the way of continued infrastructure progress and important Town Meeting votes in the spring and fall.
“There’s going to be a lot of big votes where the residents are going to be asked to help determine the future of the town,” Ramsey said.
Reflecting on 2025, Ramsey pointed out notable developments in the completion of the Avenue A Streetscape Project and the Clean Water Facility screw pump replacement. Other developments include the Department of Public Works relining 50 manholes and the installation of a 50-kilowatt solar array on Town Hall, expected to go live in January.
Outside of project development, the town also saw the arrival of new department heads, including Montague Police Chief Jason Haskins, Director of Assessing Adam Tocci and Town Clerk Wendy Bogusz. The town has also hired Ashley Gough as public health director. She is expected to start Jan. 12.
“Those are things that were a big focus of the administration,” Ramsey said.
Moving into 2026, the town is building on progress made on Town Meeting-approved zoning amendments for mixed-use development of the former Farren Care Center, an amended demolition design contract for the former Strathmore mill complex, traffic-calming infrastructure along Main Street in Montague Center and soil cleanup at the First Street parking lot to revive a stalled Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity housing project.
Later in the year, Ramsey said two important votes will come before residents: a spring Town Meeting and ballot vote on the 38 Avenue A library building project and a fall ballot vote for the new Franklin County Technical School building.
The library project is waiting for the green light from the state on the submitted building design, according to the Montague Public Libraries website. A new library at 38 Avenue A would replace the existing Carnegie Library at 201 Avenue A. Once a design is approved and the state designates its portion of the project’s cost, residents will learn about the tax implications ahead of a Town Meeting vote to approve the project, which needs a two-thirds majority vote. From there, a ballot measure will go to voters for their approval.
For Franklin Tech, all 19 member towns will be asked to approve funding for the construction of a $246 million new school building through the Massachusetts School Building Authority, which reimburses a portion of eligible construction costs. Ramsey said a vote is planned for September, but this timeline could change as state primary and midterm votes will also occur around the same time.
Another anticipated ballot vote is for the regional agreement for the proposed Great River Regional School District, which would merge the Gill-Montague and Pioneer Valley regional school districts. However, the timeline is still fluid.
As for the fiscal year 2027 budget, Ramsey said the town is in a healthy place financially, with large taxation capacity and flush reserve accounts. Although there is a $263,994 early budget deficit, he said he’s confident there are avenues, like taxation, to balance the budget as the process continues.
Like many Franklin County towns, Montague is also budgeting for the potential of further increases to health insurance costs through its membership in the Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust. During an early review of the budget on Dec. 15, Ramsey noted that the town is budgeting for another 20% increase in costs, following two mid-year increases in the FY26 cycle. If another increase is approved by the trust in early 2026, this means the town would see roughly $582,000 in unanticipated health insurance costs for FY27.
“It took a huge surprise hit to our budget and, [like in] most municipalities, the personnel costs are the biggest cost,” Ramsey said. “Spike in health insurance really does present challenges for municipal budgets.”
Ramsey said there are options to help lessen the burden, including a health insurance opt-out policy that the Selectboard approved on Dec. 22. The hope is that another 20% increase is not coming down the pike, which Ramsey said would “save our budget.”
“For better or worse, we’re all in it together,” Ramsey said about the local impact to municipal budgets from health insurance increases.
Gill
Heading into 2026, Gill is looking at two roof projects, including the continuation of the Gill Elementary School roof project with reimbursement from the MSBA.
Town Administrator Ray Purington reflected on some 2025 developments, including department head changes amid new hires, including Fire Chief William Kimball, Tax Collector Aimee Williams and Town Accountant Cathryn Thomas. Principal Assessor Diane Sumrall was one of the departing department heads this year, as she left for a principal assessor position in Erving, and applicants are still being sought.
The town also had a changeover on the Selectboard, with former member Randy Crochier not seeking reelection after 15 years. His seat was filled by John Ward.
“The town is doing well, but the departments are really all pulling together, getting things done, taking care of what needs to be taken care of,” Purington said.
Moving into 2026, the Gill Elementary roof project is expected to continue to progress. On Dec. 12, the MSBA voted to execute the project funding agreement, with a $2.4 million grant from the state to cover a portion of the total $3.8 million cost.
Purington said he anticipates construction of the roof won’t begin in 2026, but the year will be spent doing public outreach to update residents on the project, and there will be a Town Meeting vote and possible ballot measure this spring.
“We’ll be looking to have some information sessions about the needs of the school … hopefully letting people tour the building to get to know a space that, for many people, is something they haven’t been in since they were a kid,” Purington said.
Another roof project Purington highlighted is at the Riverside Municipal Building, which houses the Gill Historical Commission. A hole in the roof developed after a heavy rainstorm in October, and patches have been installed to keep moisture out.
Purington said the town will start looking at the process of design and engineering procurement, along with getting cost estimates and bids out for replacement.
“That’s certainly one of our big, big projects for next year,” he said.
The town will also be participating in the fall Franklin Tech school vote and the Great River School District regional agreement vote in 2026.
Budget-wise, Purington said the FY27 budget is going to be a bumpy ride, in part due to the health insurance and operating cost increases across the board. Labor shortages, employee compensation and energy costs are also part of the equation.
“I think this is going to be one of the toughest budget years that we’ve seen, probably in 15 to 20 years,” Purington said.
Erving
Town Administrator Bryan Smith said 2026 is the year for construction on closed bridges in Erving.
Reflecting on what was accomplished in 2025, Erving has made progress on the Church Street bridge replacement and the Farley Road bridge replacement in conjunction with Wendell, but faced some delays on both projects.
In the spring of 2026, Smith said the state Department of Transportation is likely to start construction on the Church Street bridge. The state released construction bid documents for the project over the summer, and it was awarded to AJ Virgilio Construction Inc.
According to the MassDOT project page, the construction bid was for $2.3 million, and the project will include a full replacement of the bridge, with two 10-foot travel lanes, a 4-foot shoulder on each side of the road and sidewalk access for pedestrians.
“We’re enthusiastic about that, but I think we’re also very cognizant that that was longer than we had anticipated,” Smith said about the delay.
The Farley Road bridge replacement also ran into delays due to the scope of repairs necessary. The structure was originally constructed in 1889.
Both Erving and Wendell need to fill a $376,000 funding gap to replace the deteriorated bridge, with the total estimated price tag being $780,000. About $405,000 has been set aside for the project from both towns.
“The hope is that this spring and into the early summer, we will have the Farley Bridge back open,” Smith said. “So 2026 will be the year of getting bridges restored and reopened to our community.”
Other projects that the town will continue to work on in 2026 include the multi-generational and senior housing development, Evergreen Circle, and the Erving Elementary roof repair and heat pump project through the MSBA.
Reflecting on 2025 in Erving, Smith said the town was able to add new staff to its ranks, including Town Planner Glenn Johnson-Mussad, Health Agent David Gillis, Erving Senior & Community Center Director Dulcie McAndrews and Principal Assessor Diane Sumrall.
As Erving charts out its fiscal year 2027 budget, Smith is also anticipating an impact from health insurance increases.
The 20% increase from earlier this year is around $300,000. That number has changed as recently hired employees solidify their health insurance plans. Smith said the strategy on how to fund the increase will be worked out between the Selectboard, treasurer and himself, whether it be from free cash or stabilization.
Smith also said there could be some impact on the FY27 budget as FirstLight Hydro Generating Co. and the Board of Assessors have pending cases with the Appellate Tax Board regarding contested taxes for fiscal years 2023, 2024 and 2025. As these are pending, Smith couldn’t speak to the impact on the upcoming budget process.
Additionally, Appellate Tax Board cases between Northfield Mountain LLC and the town were settled for fiscal years 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 in October. Smith said an estimate for the abatement is roughly $2.4 million.
Smith said the assessors are still working out how to address the cost, but noted there is roughly $2.3 million in the Assessors Overlay Account, with overlay contributions from the FY26 tax rate available.
“I think there will be a deficit in that account that we will either have to raise on the recap sheet as we work on the FY27 budget,” Smith explained, “or we could make a transfer, either from stabilization or free cash, at a Special Town Meeting later this year.”