Palmer Council Opens Wastewater Loan Hearings, Accepts Fuel Assistance Donation

PALMER -- January 13, 2025, Palmer Town Council swears in new officer, advances wastewater loans, and confronts ambulance cost reality. The council opened public hearings on two wastewater treatment plant loan authorizations, $2,720,000 for UV disinfection upgrades and $273,500 in additional sludge dewatering funds on top of $2,225,000 already appropriated, with formal votes expected in February. Town Manager Brad Brothers warned that every ambulance vendor proposal under review "will have a financial impact to the FY26 budget," marking a historic departure from Palmer's zero-cost arrangement with Palmer Ambulance; Brothers indicated a special meeting may be needed before February to bring a recommendation to the council and public. The council unanimously accepted a $7,500 fuel-assistance donation from the John J. Mullen Sr. and Beatrice M. Mullen Family Charitable Foundation, approved two general fund reserve transfers of $14,625 each to fund newly split part-time assessor and building inspector positions, and voted to move the approximately $400,000 balance of a dormant school bond stabilization account into the capital improvement stabilization fund effective February 1. Town Accountant Gabriella Potter previewed updated financial policies, including a new practice of reserving funds freed by paid-off debt rather than absorbing them into operating budgets, with a formal vote scheduled for February.