Select Board Approves $1M Solar Advance, Overhauls Retiree Health Benefits

MILLIS — June 15, 2026 — Winchester Select Board approves $1 million solar advance and restructures retiree health benefits in wide-ranging June 15 meeting. The board voted unanimously to transfer $1 million from free cash into a dedicated solar panel fund — part of a $7.9 million Town Meeting authorization — to meet federal credit deadlines before July 4. On retiree health insurance, member Paris Bianni moved a unanimous vote to move all current and future retirees to a 50 percent premium-sharing level, raise existing retirees' Medicare Part B support from roughly $109 to $200 per month, and eliminate Part B coverage for employees retiring after August 1, 2026, citing a 66 percent growth in retiree health costs over six years at an 8.8 percent annual rate. The board also unanimously accepted a $200,000 outdoor amphitheater donation from the Rotary Club of Winchester to be built behind the town library, created a new Long-Range Financial Planning Committee modeled on Arlington's, and appointed Fred Huber to the Wrightlock Farm Conservancy over a second highly qualified candidate, Dana Carlson, whom members urged to seek openings on other town bodies.