WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE – 1/14/25

SELECT BOARD 

Budget discussion. At its meeting last Tuesday, the Select Board addressed concerns regarding the School Department budget, following the Town Manager Elaine Lazarus’ announcement at the December 17th meeting that, due to the town’s $4.5 million deficit, all town departments should submit budget requests with no greater than a 1.3% increase. In response to expressed concerns about cost-cutting education, the board noted that no decisions have been made regarding the budget and that “the town always supports the schools.” The School Committee is set to review the School Department’s proposed budget prior to the end of January. 

Concern was also noted over potential budget cuts for the Water Department and Department of Public Works, citing the importance of clean water and eliminating PFAS from the water supply. 

Articles for Annual Meeting. Additionally, as the warrant has opened for the submission of articles for Annual Town Meeting, Lazarus recommend the Select Board submit an article for a legislative petition to designate meal tax money for economic development purposes, and another to allow the Center School to obtain a long-term lease to support the proposed reuse of the school as a partnership between town departments and the Hopkinton Center for the Arts.  Select Board attempts to allay fears of schools budget slashing as $3M town budget deficit looms (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 01/08/25)

Articles for Annual Town Meeting must be submitted to the Town Manager’s office by February 3rd. 

For information on bringing a citizen’s petition article, take a look at eHop’s Citizen’s Petition Guide, with accompanying videos created by our intern.

New Trails Committee. Also at its meeting last Tuesday, the Select Board appointed members to the newly formed Trails Committee, following the disbandment of both the Upper Charles Trail Committee and Trails Committee (formerly the Trail Coordination and Management Committee). Appointed committee members include veteran members of the two former committees, as well as several new candidates, for varying terms of one, two and three-year terms. All term lengths following the expiration of these initial terms will be three years.  Select Board appoints members of new Trails Committee (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 01/08/25)

PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

FY 26 Budget. At its meeting last Thursday, the School Committee, Select Board and Appropriation Committee took another joint look at the proposed school department budget for FY 26, which is $67.1 million – 6.1 % over last year. The budget presentation highlighted all personnel requests. In addressing town budget constraints, Select Board chair Brian Herr deemed it unnecessary to discuss cuts at this point, as the the budget won’t get finalized until the spring.  At joint meeting, boards examine proposed school budget again (Article by Susan Gonsalves, 01/10/25)

Powerschool cybersecurity breach. Families were notified last Wednesday of a nation wide cyber hack of the student information system, PowerSchool. The HPS director of technology confirmed that some personal information had been extracted, noting that they did not believe any financial or social security information was affected, as such information is not stored in PowerSchool. Parents were urged to be vigilant and monitor their children’s accounts and report any suspicious activity to the police.  School district’s student information system hacked in apparent national cybersecurity breach (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 01/08/25)

CONSERVATION COMMISSION 

At its meeting last Tuesday, the Conservation Commission continued a hearing regarding the Department of Public Works’ requested town vegetation management plan, which includes the use of herbicides. The DPW presented this plan as a means to maintain the safety and aesthetics of all public roadways, noting the overgrowth of invasive Japanese knotweed over the past several years, which has proved challenging to control. The plan purports to limit the amount of herbicide use, which would be decreased as the situation becomes more manageable, however, some members of the Sustainable Green Committee and its environmental working group opposed the plan expressing concerns over the unsafe and toxic nature of the proposed herbicides. The hearing was continued to January 28th for allow additional time for review of the plan.

Also at this meeting, the commission voted unanimously to release three lots at The Trails for development, following the submission of a more detailed plan by Engineer Peter Bemis regarding best management practices for the lots. Construction on these lots is expected to commence in three weeks. 

Additionally, improvements made in response to a violation issued against Newbury Glen regarding sediment found beyond the construction limit were addressed.  Conservation Commission continues hearing on townwide vegetation management plan after pushback on herbicide use (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 01/09/25)

UPDATES FROM THE TOWN MANAGER’S OFFICE

Senior & Disabled Tax Relief Fund 

Qualifying senior and disabled residents can seek property tax relief if they are at least 60 years of age or have a state-recognized disability, and own or occupy a single-family home in town as their primary residence. The maximum household income is $52,000 for one individual, $63,000 for two, $73,000 for three, and $80,000 for four. The assistance amount depends on available funding as the Fund is supported entirely by community donations. The number of qualified applicants jumped 45% in the past year and expected to jump significantly again in the upcoming year.

The application deadline to apply for assistance from the Senior & Disabled Tax Relief Fund is  February 21, 2025. The 2025 Hopkinton Tax Relief Application can be accessed HERE. A hard copy of the application can also be obtained at Town Hall, the Senior Center, the Public Library, the Youth and Family Services Dept., or can be mailed upon request from the Treasurer’s Office by calling (508) 497-9715.

Donations to the Fund can be made HERE or by check. Checks must be made out to “Town of Hopkinton” and include “Tax Relief” in the memo.  They can be mailed to Tax Relief Fund, Town of Hopkinton, 13 Main St., Hopkinton, MA 01748. Donations are 100% tax-deductible.

Senior Citizen Property Tax Exemption for School Building Construction Projects

The Town Manager’s Weekly Update has also shared information regarding a new means-tested senior citizen property tax exemption for school building construction projects which will be available starting in FY 2026. Qualifications are similar to the existing circuit breaker programs, and further information / guidelines will be included in the Senior Solutions Guidebook.

Municipal Aggregation Public Hearing Info 

The Department of Public Utilities will be holding a virtual public hearing to hear comment regarding the town’s proposed municipal aggregation plan on  Wednesday, January 22, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. Under this plan, the town, rather than individual residents, would purchase electricity from a supplier, which could offer more stable pricing, cleaner energy, and a broader selection of electric plans. Any public feedback may be given at that meeting or in writing at any time prior to the meeting.

Attendees can join the Zoom meeting through this link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87178872065

For audio-only access to the hearings, attendees can dial in at (301) 715 8592 (not toll free) and enter Meeting ID#: 871 7887 2065.

SUPPORT eHOP’S MARATHON RUNNER! 

Nick Miller will be running the Boston Marathon on behalf of eHop this year!  

Read more about Nick and consider showing your support to him and eHop through a donation.

MBTA COMMUNITIES ACT UPDATE

Supreme Judicial Court Decision in Milton MBTA case. On Wednesday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rendered a decision in the Milton MBTA Communities Act case, in which the Attorney General sued the town of Milton for noncompliance with the state law requiring communities with access to public transit to zone for multi-family housing. The town of Milton had argued in the case that the state could not force compliance with the law but rather the consequence for noncompliance could only be the loss of certain state grants. In its decision, the Court held that because state officials did not follow certain procedural rules when issuing the act’s guidelines, the act is not presently enforceable on the town of Milton. However, the Court ruled that the act is constitutional and compliance can be enforced by the Attorney General, provided the state rewrites the guidelines and runs them through the proper channels.  SJC rules MBTA rezoning law is constitutional, ‘enforceable,’ if state redoes rollout (Article by Lisa Creamer and Andrea Perdomo-Hernandez, 01/09/25)

Hopkinton voted to accept a zoning overlay proposal to bring the town into compliance with the MBTA Communities Act at Special Town Meeting in November.