Wayland capital committee holds $8.3 million line against town manager's $13.8 million plan

WAYLAND — March 4, 2026 — Wayland capital committee stands by $8.3 million plan, rejecting town manager's $13.8 million ask. The Capital Improvement Planning Committee declined Tuesday to revise its fiscal 2027 recommendation, leaving Finance Committee members to reconcile a roughly $5.5 million gap before the May 4 Town Meeting. Both figures exclude the $38.6 million MWRA connection, whose 0 percent state financing application was rejected, DPW Director Tom Holder is appealing. The largest dispute is a $2.5 million High School Phase III stadium project the town manager pulled from fiscal 2029 to fiscal 2027 as excluded debt; after the town engineer confirmed no physical overlap with a proposed septic project and combined savings of only $215,000, all five members declined to accelerate it. Chair Kelly Lappin said she would "prefer slower" given likely operating overrides in fiscal 2028. Vice Chair Bradford Carver said he was "not very satisfied" with the rationale. The minutes vote passed 5-0.