Hatfield Select Board backs Connecticut River trail, approves wastewater ballot question

HATFIELD -- April 5, 2022, Hatfield Select Board unanimously endorses a $6.8 million Connecticut River multi-use trail and advances a Proposition 2½ debt exclusion ballot question for wastewater upgrades. Open Space Committee representative Mark Gillette told the board the Hatfield-Northampton trail has been in conceptual planning since 2008, with roughly 95 percent of the route running through Northampton and a terminus proposed at Elm Court; the letter of support will be forwarded to MassDOT's Project Review Committee at Park Plaza. The board also committed $470,953.41 in FY2022 water, sewer, and meter repair billing to the collector, reflecting rate increases approved last fall. In a lengthy joint session with the Finance Committee, the board heard a proposal from SUZER IT to replace network infrastructure across five town facilities for up to $37,000 and reviewed a total FY23 IT budget of approximately $86,000, with no vote taken. Town Treasurer-Collector Sharon reported $100,670,000 in outstanding tax title receivables and recommended a first-ever $10,000 deposit into the town's OPEB liability trust fund. The board approved covering a $16,737 CARES Act reimbursement shortfall from ARPA funds and scheduled its next budget session for April 19, pending receipt of Massachusetts House local aid figures.