Norton Finance Committee Unanimously Approves Six Warrant Articles Totaling $1.7 Million

NORTON — April 15, 2026 — Norton Finance Committee unanimously approved six warrant articles totaling $1,692,761 at its April 15 meeting, anchored by a fiscal year 2027 capital plan and a suite of water, sewer, and infrastructure projects. New DPW Director Justin Chica disclosed that the town's water enterprise fund had accumulated $5.2 million in retained earnings through a longstanding practice of calculating projected annual revenue over only 10 months rather than 12, with the two excluded months rolling into surplus each year — growing from $250,000 in fiscal year 2022 to $1.3 million in fiscal year 2025. "I really don't think there was anything malicious," Chica said, noting the town administrator confirmed state filings were accurate throughout. The committee also voted unanimously to spend $100,000 to fix a stormwater drainage problem at 44 South Worcester Street, where a homeowner described eight years of basement flooding that worsened after a town-installed retention pond went in during 2024. A proposed bylaw requiring property owners to shovel sidewalks within 12 hours of a snowfall drew skepticism from multiple members who cited unenforceability and the safety of school children on Main Street, and was not brought to a vote.