LONGMEADOW — The warrant has been finalized for Longmeadow’s Annual Town Meeting, located at Longmeadow High School on May 12 at 7 p.m.
Voters will look at 32 articles in total, many concerning the transferring, appropriation or approval of town funds, all of which have been recommended by the Finance Committee besides Article 7, the fiber project. Others look toward amending the town bylaws.
Article 2 looks to transfer the sum of $450,000 from available funds supplementing the fiscal year 2026 snow and ice budget after a harsher winter caused costs to exceed the original budget appropriation of $125,000.
Article 3 sees if the town will transfer $12,000 to fund commemoration events and activities to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, coordinated by the Revolution 250 Task Force.
Article 4 is to fund DPW fence repairs for $15,000, along with annual playground inspection and maintenance for $5,000. The goal is to eventually fund these through the operating budget, but the FY27 budget did not allow for the funds, according to the Finance Committee.
Article 5 looks to add $50,000 to the other post-employment benefits stablization fund. OPEB are benefits other than pension or retirement income that are earned during employment but payable upon retirement.
Center Elementary School is in focus, as Article 6 would appropriate, borrow or transfer money to pay for final design and construction costs for the roof. The amount of money is to be expended under the direction of the School Building Committee. Phase one of a flat roof replacement was approved at the Annual Town Meeting in 2022 for $695,000, but an updated estimate exceeded funds for the project. The article requires a ⅔ majority vote to pass.
Article 7 for the proposed fiber project has been heavily discussed going into Town Meeting and proposes the town will pay about $8.6 million for the first phase and half of phase two of the $27 million project’s borrowing plan. This would increase average property taxes by about $97 per year for a total of about $2,140 over the loan’s 20-year span. The article requires a ⅔ majority vote to pass.
The first phase and first half of the second phase would include the construction of the central fiber hub and the connection to 1,600 single-family homes, 30 commercial units and 20 multi-dwelling units.
The $8.6 million comes from an assumed 40% take rate, the percentage of residents who sign onto fiber.
Select Board member Vineeth Hemavathi said at a meeting on April 6 that the assumption comes from experiences in other Western Massachusetts towns with fiber, where 40% has been the lowest take rate seen, adding that a fiber project has not failed in any town.
Article 8 is to see if the town will accept the act creating the Massachusetts Municpal Wholesale Electric Comany, apply to MMWEC for admission as a member and agree to comply with the terms and conditions of membership, fixed by the bylaws of MMWEC.
MMWEC is a nonprofit that helps municipal utilities manage power supply, financing and energy resources. The town and Municpal Light Plan can explore funding opportunities for the fiber buildout by joining MMWEC. It could also provide better borrowing terms than what the town currently has available through debt exclusion.
Article 9 is for the approval of the $93.3 million operating budget, to fix the FY27 salary and compensation of the moderator at $1,000 and the Select Board members at $2,000 each and to provide for a reserve fund. The general fund is also priced at around $83.2 million and appropriated from general taxation.
Articles 10 and 11 consider capital funds and projects, seeking to approve around $3.2 million for capital projects in Article 10 and transferring $423,267 from the operating stablization fund to the capital stabilzation fund in Artile 11.
Article 12 is to transfer $367,000 from stormwater retained earnings to pay costs of a stormwater capacity study and catch basin repair. The goal of the project is to develop a comprehensive flood vulnerability assessment for flood-prone areas.
Article 13 puts $175,025 toward paying the FY27 district improvement financing debt service, which requires the town to annually budget for the debt service relating to the Dwight Road and Maple Street district improvement financing program. An ambulance capital account looks to be created from $235,547 in Article 14.
Unexpended bond proceeds for water mains of around $463,000 are no longer needed for the projects they were approved for and look to be transferred to the Western Drive water mains replacement project in Aricle 15. The project in total is expected to cost around $8.5 million. The transferred funds are funds that can only be used for water projects.
Article 16 is similar and looks to transfer around $572,500 of unexpended bond proceeds to slip lining and manhole rehab, which is expected to cost $2.5 million and was approved at a Special Town Meeting in November 2025.
Articles 18 and 19 would establish funding limits for the Council on Aging revolving fund and the town’s athletic field signage revolving fund, with both including payments from the fund to be expended by the directors of up to $250,000.
Additional funding articles include around $180,000 for the community pools amenities improvement project in Article 21, $15,015 for the preservation of collections at the Storrs House Museum project in Article 22, $71,000 for the Bliss Park clay courts project in Article 23, $125,000 for the Longmeadow Adult Center Home modification fund in Article 24 and $5,000 for the Longmeadow Tree Committee arboretum on the green project in Article 25.
Article 27 wants to amend Chapter 8, Article 10 of the town’s general bylaws by deleting language that prevents members of the Historic District Commission from serving more than two consecutive three-year terms. This is the only board with this type of language and the Commission has struggled to fill vacant positions in the past several years, according to the article.
Article 28 replaces language in the snow removal bylaw, such as defining fire hydrant clearance and the timeframe a person must clear snow or ice from sidewalks on their property with penalties for violations.
Article 29 would amend the bylaws to include that cryptocurrency teller machines pose risks to customers, including financial fraud, money laundering and lack of recourse for users. The purpose is to prohibit the use of cryptocurrency ATMs within the town in an effort to protect the citizens.
There are two citizen petitions on the warrant, including Article 31, an amendment to the animals bylaw to include a dangerous dog ordinance. The amendment’s purpose is to safeguard residents, visitors and domestic animals by imposing strict standards for the ownership and control of dogs that present a risk to the public.
It adds a definition of a “dangerous” dog, strengthens owner responsibility, increases fines, mandates insurance coverage and grants animal control officers 24-hour inspection authority to ensure compliance. Resident Sally Hage drafted the amendment after a dog that had already been labeled “dangerous” by the Select Board, attacked both her and her dog while out on a walk.
Article 32, the other citizen petition, is to see if the town will vote to allow the installation of fixed ground-mount, photo voltaic or thermal flat-plate solat panels within the side lot lines of residential property. It requires a majority ⅔ vote to pass.
The installation of ground-mount solar panels on either the side or front of a home is in conflict with zoning bylaws, and the Planning Board will make a recommendation on the Town Meeting floor.
The entire warrant can be read in full at longmeadowma.gov/283/Town-Meeting
