Select Board Rejects Northern Road Route for Payne's Hill Water Tank Site

WESTON — December 17, 2025 — Weston's Water Tank Working Group voted 2-1 to reject a northern permanent access road to the Payne's Hill tank site, directing engineers to develop a center-route alternative. Select Board Chair Lisa Revers and member John McDonald voted against a motion by member Tom Palmer to formalize the northern alignment, which Wright Pierce engineers had incorporated into 30 percent design drawings submitted in July. Engineers from Wright Pierce, led by Rob Williamson and Amy Coppers, estimated the center-route alignment could cost between $200,000 and $500,000 more than the northern route due to utility relocation and additional stormwater controls. Residents including Tom Seaman, Wayne Bloom, and Roy McDowell testified that the center route had been the basis of a years-long compromise among abutters. The group also heard extensive public comment from attorney Dan Hill, representing abutter Michael Chasen of 111 Bradford Road, challenging whether the existing Cat Rock steel tank should be rehabilitated rather than replaced — a question Revers directed to be answered in writing before the next meeting.