Lincoln selectmen lean against Minuteman regional agreement amendments

LINCOLN — February 24, 2014 — Lincoln selectmen signal opposition to Minuteman regional agreement amendments before March 29 town meeting. Select Board Chair Peter Braun told colleagues the amendments would weight school committee votes by enrollment — leaving Lincoln with roughly 1 percent — and shift capital costs onto member towns, costing Lincoln about $50,000 a year more, or $1.5 million over 30 years, on a projected $130 million building project. Finance Committee Chair Laura Sander said her committee is leaning the same way, citing the school's unresolved inter-municipal agreement track with non-member towns that supply 45 percent of enrollment. Selectman Noah Eckhouse called the package "a bulldoze job on the small towns." The board also unanimously appointed architect Judith Lawler as alternate to both historic commissions and signed a $369,498 bond anticipation note renewal at 0.5 percent interest.