Overview:

Royalston voters will vote on a special town meeting on January 14, which includes a request to rescind $1.7 million in unused balances from seven Proposition 2 1/2 debt exclusions passed between 2016 and 2023. The largest of the debt exclusions to be cleared is $1.4 million to set up the town's broadband internet system, which was not set up as Spectrum provided the service. Other articles on the warrant include allocating funds to the town's capital stabilization account, purchasing a new grader for the DPW, and purchasing IT equipment for the Winchendon Police Department.

ROYALSTON – Voters will get the new year underway with a Special Town Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 14.

Among the six articles on the warrant is one asking voters to rescind $1.7 million in unused balances from seven Proposition 2 ½ debt exclusions passed between 2016 and 2023.

“We want them cleared because they weren’t used,” said Selectboard member Linda Alger. “So, people shouldn’t assume we’re going to get $1.7 million; it’s money that we didn’t spend on those debt exclusions. It’s just clearing the books.”

The largest of the debt exclusions to be cleared is $1.4 million to set up the town’s broadband internet system.

“That’s the big one,” said Alger. “We never set up the broadband system because Spectrum came in and we didn’t have to spend that money.”

In addition to the $1.4 million for broadband, voters are being asked to clear the following unused balances:

  • Solinas Zimmerman property –$196,00
  • Raymond School roof – $7,012
  • DPW pickup truck – $7,310
  • DPW dump sander – $92,293
  • DPW hydraulic lift – $6,415
  • DPW vibratory roller and trailer – $9,185

Voters will also be asked in Articles 5 and 6 to allocate just under $57,000 from free cash to the town’s capital stabilization account, and another $28,000 from free cash to the stabilization account, respectively.

“Once the free cash is certified we have to allocate it,” said Alger. “Which is for expenses ahead of time, and then whatever is left over we put into the stabilization accounts.”

Article 1 seeks $50,000 for a new grader for the DPW.

“Normally we would absolutely not put a big ticket item on a Special Town Meeting warrant. Here, we have special circumstances because the current grader needed $40,000 or $50,000 worth of repairs,” Alger said. “So rather than spending $40,000 or $50,000 in repairs, we were able to get a decent trade as-is on a new one. And we’ll be able to purchase this without doing a debt exclusion.”

Article 4 seeks $20,000 for the purchase and servicing of information technology equipment. This will allow the town to complete the consolidation of dispatch services and records management with the Winchendon Police Department.

Article 2 asks voter permission to spend just over $750 in free cash to cover two unpaid streetlight bills from FY25.

The Special Town Meeting begins at 7 p.m. at Royalston Town Hall.