HOLDEN — Information sessions are planned in advance of a fall special town meeting with several articles for voters to weigh in on, from recreation to street improvements.
The Oct. 17 special town meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at Wachusett Regional High School, 1401 Main St., with voters slated to take action on three issues: The Dawson Recreation project and funding for the project; the Shrewsbury Street Improvement Project; and funding for a design study for the All Inclusive Playground proposed at the Holden Municipal Light Department.
The information sessions will be held at the Holden Senior Center, 1130 Main St., on Oct. 4 for the playing fields and Oct. 5 for the road improvement project. Both sessions start at 7 p.m.
The sessions will be live streamed and recorded and will be available later on demand.
The Oct. 4 playing fields information session will provide visual plans for the project, maps, physical details, etc., along with projected costs of individual items, from the lights to the picnic tables to the gravel, Town Manager Peter Lukes said.
“We will also present the funding formula for the estimated $7.6 million project that will encompass two new rectangular synthetic turf fields with lights and parking for 100 vehicles, a walking/running track around the fields, covered pavilion, outdoor exercise equipment/area, bleachers, benches, scoreboard, etc., a renovation of the existing baseball field at Dawson to synthetic turf and improved access, and a complete renovation of the existing playground at Dawson Rec, along with improved pedestrian and vehicle access around Dawson Rec area.
“There will also be a connecting path and boardwalk from the new fields to the back of the Dawson Rec area,” Lukes said of the information he will be presenting.
Town meeting voters will decide on appropriating town funds and supporting a Proposition 2½ debt exclusion for funding. The Oct. 5 Shrewsbury Street Improvement Project session will provide visual layouts of the entire corridor and the proposed changes, which include roundabouts for improved traffic flow, bike lanes, new and wider sidewalks and modernized and improved crosswalks, Lukes said.
“The funding formula relies on the state to pay 90% of the total cost. DPW representatives, project engineers from the engineering and design firm, myself and others will be on hand to answer questions and provide information.”
Information is available on the town website: https://www.holdenma. gov/department-of-public-works/ news/shrewsbury-street-and-doyleroad- improvement-project. “The town will also be releasing a video prior to the meeting that you will see on our social media and elsewhere,” Lukes said.
