Finance Committee recommends rejection of Weston's MBTA Communities zoning article

WESTON -- December 2, 2024, Weston Finance Committee splits 5-3 to oppose MBTA Communities zoning on eve of Town Meeting. The committee reversed its earlier "no position" after picking apart a Select Board-commissioned fiscal report that members said omitted school pensions, retiree health and fixed costs. Member Zachary Sadek called the report "systematically understated"; Chair Bharath Venkataraman, who voted no on the opposition motion, estimated full 750-unit build-out at the consultant's middle student ratio would cost roughly $1.9 million annually, or 1.7 percent of budget. Member Rebecca Kantar and member Jonathan Harris voted to support the article, citing Milton's reported $600,000-plus litigation costs and at-risk state grants. The committee also unanimously backed a $43 million water tank project, $37.3 million borrowed against the water enterprise fund, and the sale of the Zero Hobbs Brook parcel to abutter Granite Brook.