Weston governance panel sets research plan on Select Board expansion

WESTON — August 7, 2024 — Weston's Town Governance Study Committee outlined a research and outreach plan for a possible Select Board expansion from three to five members. Meeting with a quorum of four — Chair Harvey Boshart, Town Moderator Rip Hastings, and members Michael Pappone and John Thompson — the committee agreed to divide peer towns among members for structured interviews, with Boshart and Hastings building a comparative database and Pappone and Thompson drafting a standardized questionnaire. Sharon was highlighted as a key case study, having rejected then approved a three-to-five transition in consecutive town meetings before holding an expanded-board election this spring. The committee set September 5 and September 19 as its next meetings and is targeting October for at least one public session ahead of Weston's December 3 Annual Town Meeting, when a warrant article on the board's size could come to a vote. Boshart flagged a central concern driving the entire inquiry: "If we can't find people willing to do the service, going to five is going to create problems for us."