Wendell voters to consider change in Municipal Light Board membership

By DOMENIC POLI

Staff Writer

Published: 06-06-2024 1:42 PM

Modified: 06-12-2024 9:36 AM

WENDELL — The body tasked with overseeing Wendell’s fiber-optic network would switch from appointed to elected membership if voters adopt a particular warrant article at Saturday’s Annual Town Meeting.

One of the final items on the 31-article warrant asks if the town will convert its three-member Municipal Light Board from an entity consisting of Selectboard appointees to one filled with people selected at the polls. The Wendell Municipal Light Plant was created to develop, build and operate a broadband network within the town and its board manages that network. Plant Manager Ray DiDonato is responsible for the day-to-day operations.

“It’s been in discussion since the beginning of the MLP,” DiDonato said about the possibility of an elected board. “Some towns appoint, some elect.”

DiDonato said the argument for maintaining the status quo is that the light plant, like the Selectboard, is a town department. However, he said, having elected members will make the Municipal Light Board a little more independent of the Selectboard.

“As manager I don’t have an opinion,” he noted.

The three-member Municipal Light Board consists of Chair Lou Leelyn, Laurie DiDonato and Robert Heller.

Adoption of the article immediately following this one would abolish the appointed Municipal Light Board in favor of the elected one, effective for the May 2025 election.

Town Administrator Glenn Johnson-Mussad said the Municipal Light Plant articles are likely to be the most interesting on the warrant.

Your Daily Puzzles

Cross|Word

Flipart

Typeshift

SpellTower

Really Bad Chess

“I don’t see a ton of controversy here,” Johnson-Mussad said of the 31 articles.

Voters will also be asked to give their blessing to a proposed $4 million fiscal year 2025 budget, up from the current $3.7 million budget.

Article 5 asks voters if they wish to establish a Town Hall and Kitchen Revolving Fund for the fees received from cash donations or rentals of Town Hall, its kitchen and associated properties. Adoption of the article would authorize the Selectboard the use of the funds for the operation, maintenance and improvement of the facilities. The following article pertains to transferring the balance of the existing Town Hall Kitchen Revolving Fund to the newly established Town Hall and Kitchen Revolving Fund, and the next one asks voters if they want to eliminate the former account.

Other articles include several allocating money to pay off debts for various projects, appropriating $5,000 for Fire Department turnout gear, appropriating $5,000 for repaving work at the Wendell Recycling and Transfer Station, and authorizing the treasurer to borrow up to $53,000 to pay Wendell’s share of the cost to install new interior doors at Swift River School.

Annual Town Meeting will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday at Town Hall. The full 31-article warrant can be found at tinyurl.com/2024Wendell.

Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or
413-930-4120.