Select Board Calls Oct. 26 Fire Station Vote

Townbrief reporting Sep 9, 2026 From the Select Board meeting 17 min read

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Select Board · Meeting of September 9, 2026

Westwood swears in a new police chief and calls an Oct. 26 special town meeting on its new fire station. The Select Board unanimously set the vote for 7 p.m. at Westwood High School, where a two-thirds vote is required before a Nov. 3 ballot debt exclusion; both must pass. Police Chief Russell O'Neill, formerly of the Brookline Police Department and a Massachusetts Army National Guard battalion commander, took his oath, saying "I do not take this responsibility lightly." Finance Director Stephanie McManus pitched broadening the town's $1.7 million capital stabilization fund into a tax-mitigation tool, projecting roughly $2.4 million in potential contributions had the formula applied since fiscal 2022.

The fire station design has shrunk to just under 29,000 square feet with a four-bay apparatus layout. Board member Erin Sibley read a statement objecting to the vetting of volunteer appointees, saying the board reappointed 136 volunteers in 15 minutes in June with no background materials provided to her.

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Who Was There
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The complete report — 4,273 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of September 9, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

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