Pepperell Select Board Advances Three Warrant Articles for May Town Meeting

PEPPERELL -- March 30, 2026, Pepperell Select Board advances three warrant articles and debates elected versus appointed positions in marathon charter session. The board voted 5-0 to insert Articles 13 and 25 onto the May 5, 2026 Annual Town Meeting warrant, Article 13 authorizing $100,000 for a building feasibility study and Article 25 bringing state statutory reporting requirements into town bylaw, then voted 3-0, with members Gary and Matthew abstaining due to private-road conflicts, to insert Article 26 authorizing potential private-way maintenance. The board then joined the Charter Committee for a joint review of the draft home-rule charter that ran well over an hour, with the sharpest exchanges over whether the town clerk and board of health should shift from elected to appointed positions; the committee voted 6-3 to appoint the town clerk and unanimously to appoint the board of health, but Select Board members pushed back, with one member arguing the town clerk "has a unique duty to maintain democracy in this town." The committee is targeting a fall 2026 town meeting for the charter vote, requiring a completed draft by approximately September 15.