Northfield Finance Committee Recommends Eight Capital Items, Rejects Highway Stabilization Fund

NORTHFIELD -- March 16, 2026, Northfield Finance Committee clears eight capital requests and recommends EMS vehicle financed through state house notes. The five-member committee, chaired by Gail Weiss, voted unanimously at its March 16 meeting to recommend a $150,000 EMS response vehicle built on a Chevrolet Tahoe chassis, to be financed through a combination of EMS enterprise fund retained earnings and state house notes spread over multiple years. The committee also unanimously backed a $300,000 highway roadside mower, a police hybrid cruiser, a truck lift gate, $26,000 in town hall HVAC work, $23,000 in Northfield Elementary School flooring and carpet, $15,000 in transfer station decking, $10,000 in security cameras, and $40,000 in sewer manhole covers. A $42,000 highway UTV was rejected 5-0 as a non-priority in a tight fiscal year. The committee voted 4-0-1 against creating a highway department stabilization fund, with members preferring to rebuild the town's central capital stabilization account, which holds roughly $113,000 after being drawn down from over $1 million for the emergency services building project. The Council on Aging FY27 budget was recommended unanimously as submitted, including a $22,000 part-time position line, but members agreed by consensus to encourage the COA to involve its incoming director in any hiring decision before posting the role.