Woburn Advances Wyman School Ground Lease RFP, Hears Five Department Budgets

FOXBOROUGH — May 26, 2026 — Woburn's Infrastructure and Public Lands Committee unanimously advanced an order authorizing the mayor to issue an RFP for a ground lease of the historic Wyman School at 679 Main Street, the latest step in a years-long effort to find a productive use for the property. Councilor Demers, who has led the effort, said the process will include a minimum screening round before proposals reach the full council, with key requirements that any deal be structured as a ground lease and that the castle structure be preserved. Separately, the Finance Committee heard that Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational School's FY27 operating budget of $48,516,400 — an 11.89 percent increase — will raise Woburn's assessment by $677,449, to $3,925,906, driven by debt service normalization and declining Chapter 70 state aid. Finance Director Jay Pacone noted that a 35-student enrollment increase in FY27 generated only $526,000 in new state aid versus $910,000 for a 31-student increase the prior year, telling councilors flatly, "Something is not adding up." The new Northeast Metro building is expected to receive its occupancy permit imminently, with four new vocational programs launching in the fall.