Summary

Board approves rail trail lease and firefighter contract

LynnfieldJun 8, 20262 min read

At a glance

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Lynnfield reported an $803,000 general fund revenue deficit, $1.2 million in uncollected FY2026 real estate taxes, and only $273,000 in free cash. The Select Board also approved the rail trail lease, a conditional Rivian auto dealer license, the 2026 Hazard Mitigation Plan, and a three-year firefighters’ contract with 3% annual cost-of-living adjustments.

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Select Board

Topics discussed

LaborTransportationBudget & TaxPublic SafetyCommerceEnvironmentalUtilities

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What this means

The town is managing significant year-end financial pressure, including a $650,000 snow and ice deficit and low available reserves. The rail trail project moved forward through approval of a lease for the rail bed corridor, but a vote on temporary easements at 127 and 130 Summer Street was delayed pending further review. Rivian’s license requires demonstration drives to use a pre-programmed Interstate 95 route and follow five safety conditions.

Key decisions

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Approved the lease agreement with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for the rail bed corridor supporting the rail trail.
Delayed the vote on temporary rail trail easements at 127 and 130 Summer Street until further review, with a remote meeting planned later in June.
Approved Rivian LLC’s Class I auto dealer license at 600 Market Street with five conditions, including pre-programmed demonstration-drive routes using Interstate 95.
Adopted the Lynnfield Hazard Mitigation Plan 2026 update.
Ratified a three-year collective bargaining agreement with the Lynnfield Firefighters Association covering July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029, including a 3% cost-of-living adjustment baseline.
Approved FY2027 compensation of $550 for the Lynnfield Center Water District tax collector and $300 for each assessor, and approved the related intermunicipal agreement.
Reappointed listed town officers and staff to one-year terms.
Directed a Select Board member to work with residents and the town administrator on a Traffic Safety Advisory Committee backlog review, jurisdiction manual, escalation criteria, and options package.
Scheduled a July 13 remote meeting and July 27 in-person session to review year-end transfers and longer-term financial tracking.

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