Fall Town Meeting was declared to have a quorum at 7:05pm. Moderator William Mayer welcomed all to the meeting and read a Proclamation citing Thursday, October 20, 2022, as Community Media Day and recognizing HCAT as Holliston’s local media.
Brief presentations by the Select Board and the Finance Committee Chairs began the meeting. Both Mr. Sparrell and Dr. Szajda presented very similar information and support for key Warrant articlces.
The Town’s certified Free Cash balance at the end of FY21 was $3,716,249. As Dr. Szajda pointed out, Free Cash can vary widely and can’t be counted on to cover one-time expenses. This year we did use $3,652,650 on the approved Articles shown below. The remaining $63,599 will be held over for May 2023 Town Meeting.
**4/5 majority needed (unanimous voice vote)
The entire Fall Town Meeting Warrant can be viewed here -> https://www.townofholliston.us/sites/g/files/vyhlif706/f/uploads/ftm_oct._17_2022_final_warrant_-_v._9.30.22.pdf
Mr. Mayer thanked the citizens for participating in the Town’s democratic process. He thanked Town Administrator Ahern and the Town staff and Legal counsel that prepared the Warrant that facilitated an efficient dialogue and decision-making process.
Town Meeting was adjourned at 10:20pm. May 8, 2023 is the date for Spring Town Meeting.
TM can be an adventure and I always enjoy it. Not sue that we need the first 40 minutes to preview the 28 article that we are eventually going to vote on.
Just a comment that the ambulance service is for the benefit of all ages infant to elderly so a much needed change to Advance Life Saving Ambulance will be a benefit for ALL the residents of Holliston. We NEED to improve our services to this level as efficiently and quickly as possible- your life and that of your family could depend upon this change.
I agree with Paul Saulnier we do not need a preview when each article is read by the moderator. Wonderful to have Bill Mayer as moderator!
Paul’s point is well made.
I’ll consider it further before the next TM.
I agree with Paul and Liz. Most attending TM have reviewed the warrant and each article is also reviewed before voting on it.
Thanks for the feedback about article previews. I will condense my remarks for May.
I think we can focus on a “Pre-Town Meeting” type of setting to get a lot of questions answered (what we did on 10/3).