Town Meeting Night 1 recap: November 10, 2025

Nov 16

(7-9 minute read)

For residents looking to stay up to date on key town matters, this recap highlights the major takeaways from Town Meeting Night 1 held on Monday, November 10, 2025.

Watch the full meeting here on RCTV’s Youtube page.

Review our guide to Subsequent Town Meeting to understand the articles under consideration.

Introduction

The evening opened with Town Moderator Alan Foulds, who explained that the body would first deliberate on the Subsequent Warrant Articles before turning to the Special Warrant later in the session, if time allowed.

Key takeaways

Town Meeting approved adjustments to the FY2026 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) and Operating Budget, voted to pay the bills from previous fiscal years, and established a Veterans Assistance Fund.
Members spent much of the evening discussing proposed amendments to the Home Rule Charter, particularly around whether debate on appointment procedures belonged under Article 8 or Article 9.
Discussion of Charter Sections 1 and 2 was completed Monday night, with further debate expected when Town Meeting reconvenes.

Approved articles

Article 3: Capital Improvement Program (CIP) updates

Town Accountant Sharon Angstrom presented an overview of Reading’s financial position, noting:

The Finance Committee maintains a slight surplus to the 7% minimum threshold for reserves. Although Reading has increasingly relied on Fee Cash to balance recent budgets, the town remains in a strong overall financial position.
Debt has not yet been issued for the Killam School or Reading Center for Active Living (ReCAL) projects. The financial impact of those borrowings is expected to first appear on FY2027 tax bills.
FY26 includes a net increase of $698,000, largely due to project adjustments such as:
- Upgrades to the Parker Middle School auditorium lighting
- Transition to a new ALS defibrillator monitoring system
FY27 saw a net decrease of $221,500, as several items were moved to FY28 and infrastructure spending was reduced from 5% to 4.75%.
FY28 saw a net increase of $144,000, reflecting items shifted from FY27 and others rescheduled from FY28 to FY29.

Angstrom emphasized that using internal borrowing from Free Cash allowed Reading to pay for fieldhouse improvements while delaying debt issuance for Killam and ReCAL until January 2026, ultimately shifting the tax increase to FY27.

Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved Article 3.

Article 4: Adjustments to the FY26 Operating Budget

Sharon Angstrom outlined several updates to the FY26 Operating Budget:

An increase in health insurance costs and a slight decrease in Workers’ Compensation costs
A $240,000 increase in the assessment from Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational School, due to rising enrollment and debt obligations
$100,000 in reimbursements tied to:
- Public Safety Radio Amplification at RMHS
- Health Department rodent control initiatives

Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved Article 4.

Articles 6 & 7: Unpaid bills & Veterans Assistance Fund

Angstrom explained that Reading received late invoices from the City of Woburn for residential sewer charges for 22 residents, and an additional reimbursement request from Neststep for volunteer work at Mattera Cabin.
Town Meeting adopted M.G.L. c.60 §3F, which allows Reading to add a voluntary contribution option on tax and excise bills to support a Veterans Assistance Fund.

Both articles passed overwhelmingly.

Article 8: Amendments to Reading’s Home Rule Charter

Members of the Charter Review Committee (CRC) presented proposed updates to Sections 1 and 2 of the Home Rule Charter, focusing on definitions and procedures for the Representative Town Meeting.

Both the Finance Committee and Bylaw Committee recommended the adoption of the article.

Key updates include:

Modernized and standardized language, including:
- Replacing “Board of Selectmen” with “Select Board”
- Incorporating gender-neutral terminology
Revising the definition of majority vote so boards, committees, and commissions would require a majority of members present, rather than a majority of all seats prescribed by the Charter - a change intended to prevent delays when memberships are incomplete.

Debate over procedure

Town Meeting Members (TMMs) raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest in the reappointment process for the Finance Committee and Bylaw Committee. A TMM suggested adding a School Committee member to the appointment panel.

CRC members emphasized the importance of having someone with a working knowledge of committee functions involved in such appointments.

However, Moderator Alan Foulds ruled the proposal out of order, stating that it represented a substantive change beyond the scope of Article 8 and required advance public notice.

An appeal was made, but the majority of TMMs upheld the Moderator’s ruling.

Several TMMs also reminded the body that the Charter Review process has included many public meetings and opportunities for input, and that the Town Meeting floor was not the proper venue for introducing major structural changes.

Town Meeting concluded for the evening shortly after completing debate on Sections 1 and 2.