Select Board advances Holiday Road study, shelves pension bond petition

WAYLAND — February 2, 2026 — Wayland Select Board advances Holiday Road study article and shelves pension obligation bond petition. The board discussed but did not vote on Article DD, which would fund preliminary engineering, appraisal and site analysis of a 13.72-acre town-owned parcel currently held by the School Committee; member William Whitney outlined a scope including site survey, traffic study and environmental review. Finance Director Brian Keveny urged the board to drop Article W, a home-rule petition to authorize pension obligation bonds against roughly $60 million in unfunded liability, saying "it would be very difficult for me to come to the selectmen if the stars were right and recommend this." The board voted 5-0 to make Town Manager Michael McCall signatory on a Peregrine community aggregation renewal that has saved Wayland ratepayers $1.32 million since 2024. Capital Improvement Planning Committee Chair Kelly Lappin recommended an $8.3 million FY27 capital budget covering 26 projects, against $14.8 million in requests.