WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE – 05/12/26

ANNUAL TOWN ELECTION

Annual Town Election 2026 will be held on next Monday, May 18, 2026. Polls are open from 7:00 am – 8:00 pm at the Hopkinton Middle School Brown Gym. 

Check out eHop’s Town Election 2026 page for more details and for the list of candidates. 

SELECT BOARD 

At its Tuesday meeting, the Select Board discussed the search for a new police chief in light of Chief Joseph Bennett’s impending retirement. Per human resources director Jessica Lewerenz, a request for quotes were sent to four municipal consulting firms to assist with the town’s search, and Public Safety Consultants was the only one to respond. The board unanimously voted to select PSC, whose proposal met all requirements sought and fell below the $10,000 quote. The board further discussed a search process framework, emphasizing the importance of resident participation and community input. Chair Joe Clark proposed an initial screening committee made up of six residents and six town employees, with a second committee made up of town leaders to interview the candidates after the initial committee review, and the Select Board to conduct final interviews. Vice chair Shahidul Mannan’s suggestion of adding three town leaders to the initial screening committee, as well as including an HPD member, received pushback from other board members.  

Select Board stresses resident input in police chief selection process (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 05/06/26) 

The board also approved asking town counsel to appear at its next meeting to consult on the proposed common victualer license policy the board has worked on over the past few months and answer a number of questions regarding the policy, its implementation and enforcement. It was deemed preferable to discuss the matter with town counsel in the wake of Annual Town Meeting, and prior to the start of summer.   

In other business, the board discussed ATM attendance and ways to make attending more feasible for community members next year. It also approved the $67,667,500 short-term Bond Anticipation Note and $49,610,000 long-term bond to support the capital projects approved at ATM. 

Select Board seeks town counsel feedback on proposed CV license policy (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 05/06/26)

PERMANENT BUILDING COMMITTEE

At its Wednesday meeting, the Permanent Building Committee discussed the Center School reuse project. It voted to allow the Town Manager, Elaine Lazarus, and town engineer/facilities director, Dave Daltorio, to sign a memorandum of understanding on the project to allow the CPC to release funds for demolition and construction document preparation. Demolition costs were just approved at Town Meeting. The HCA’s executive director, Kelly Grill, informed the committee that she is waiting to hear about two grants, for $4 million and $1 million, respectively, which could be used in part to help fund the demolition / removal of hazardous waste work. Project architects noted that there was some schedule flexibility to hear back on the status of these grants. It was also noted that schematic designs would have to be approved in order for the project to commence. Recent schematic design plans show project costs shooting up from $10 million to $16.8 million, and the committee discussed potential changes in the designs to cut down on project costs. One cost-cutting proposal from the Historical Commission is to use a material that “looks like slate” for less prominent roof shingles. A revised schematic design will be worked on. 

Permanent Building Committee approves MOU, allowing Center School reuse project to move forward (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 05/08/26) 

SCHOOL COMMITTEE 

At its Thursday meeting, the School Committee honored vice chair Susan Stephenson in her final meeting as a member and expressed gratitude for her service and insight. 

The committee continued a vote on a $664,300 bid to lease 1,300 Chromebooks for elementary school students in order to compare costs with previous years. It approved a $325,000 contract for the high school tray wash installation project after reviewing bid submissions. It also voted against having school choice in town, in light of large class sizes, tight space, and budget constraints. 

The committee also heard from the director of English Learning acquisition, equity and access, Jennifer Cuker, about the new “Growing Together” initiative to build cross-cultural understanding in the community, assist families who are new to the U.S. school system, and support students’ sense of belonging. 

School Committee bids Stephenson goodbye, considers computer bids (Article by Susan Gonsalves, 05/08/26) 

PLANNING BOARD 

At its Monday meeting, the Planning Board addressed two requests relating to the proposed development of a second home at the rear of a historic home at 82 Clinton Street discussed at previous meetings. Engineers from the town’s consultant firm Tighe & Bond noted that more time was needed to review updated engineering plans, particularly regarding emergency vehicle access and the driveway design. Some board members were reluctant to approve the project absent that review, and board chair Rob Benson expressed his concerns with approving the project due to its unusual “stacking” of exceptions to maximize property value. The applicant asserted that his intent to preserve the historic home should be weighed in the decision. Ultimately, the applicant withdrew his two motions, at a board member’s suggestion, with the intent to refile after the upcoming election so that a full nine-member board can vote, as the project requires a six-vote supermajority for approval. An informal straw poll showed six members in favor and two opposed; however, one supporting member is leaving the board.  

In other business, the board discussed the issue of accepting private ways as public roads, such as Auciello Drive which was the subject of a citizen’s petition addressed at Town Meeting that failed in a 53-42 vote. Members deemed it beyond the board’s scope, with Select Board and other town entity feedback needed. The Auciello Drive petitioners plan to bring an acceptance proposal to the board and requested that the board remove two conditions it added last year: that the town bears no responsibility to maintain, repair or plow the private way, and that acceptance of the private way is conditioned on compliance with current town standards. Petitioners have pointed to current bylaws and state laws that they believe are inconsistent with these conditions. The board noted that this should addressed in a future agenda to allow members time to review the laws in question. Members acknowledged the “quagmire” between residents being burdened with costly upgrades to bring older private roads up to current standards and the DPW’s budget constraints. 

Finally, the board unanimously voted to continue the hearing on 75 South Street at the applicant’s request. 

Planning Board approves withdrawal of Clinton Street requests; applicant to reapply (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 05/12/26) 

MAIN STREET CORRIDOR PROJECT 

The latest Main Street Corridor Project update lists the following anticipated upcoming work: 

“Project Status/Anticipated Work

Amorello has confirmed they plan to be onsite in the next two weeks. Initial work will include:

• Driveway reconstruction at 35 Main Street.
• Drain manhole replacement at Hiller’s parking lot.
• Replacement of the textured triangle at 2 Wood Street to deter left turns out of the daycare.
• Sidewalk and curb work throughout the project.
• Amorello will coordinate with utility companies to raise utility structures ahead of final paving.
• Final paving on the east side of the project is tentatively scheduled for the week after the 4th of July.”