Hatfield Select Board Unanimously Backs $12 Million Sewer Upgrade for Town Meeting

HATFIELD -- March 8, 2022, Hatfield Select Board votes to bring a $12 million wastewater plant upgrade to annual town meeting. The board voted 3-0 Tuesday to advance the proposal, which would overhaul a 35-year-old facility whose major systems have exceeded their expected lifespan. Engineer Dave Prickett of DPC Engineering told the board that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has signaled a preliminary grant commitment of 20 to 25 percent of the project cost, roughly $2.4 million, with the balance financed over 40 years at approximately 1.25 percent interest, producing an estimated annual debt payment of just over $300,000. Under a 50-50 split between sewer users and the general fund, a homeowner with a $300,000 assessed value on septic would pay about $61 more per year; a sewer customer at the same assessment would pay roughly $280 more. Town Moderator Joe Czajkowski urged the board from the audience to wait for the May annual meeting rather than call a special session, saying residents would be "very skeptical" of a rushed vote. Separately, auditor Tony Roselli reported that the town's unassigned fund balance has reached $1.7 million, 15 percent of general fund expenditures, a first-time "tier one" bond-rating benchmark, with all prior material weaknesses now resolved.