Cohasset Select Board Closes Town Meeting Warrant, Recommends FY27 Budget Unanimously

COHASSET — March 31, 2026 — Cohasset Select Board closes Annual Town Meeting warrant and recommends FY27 budget in joint session with Advisory Committee. Meeting jointly on Tuesday evening, the Select Board and Advisory Committee voted unanimously to recommend the $43.2 million operating budget — with the school receiving $26 million and the town $17.2 million — after Interim Town Manager Michelle Leary presented a detailed accounting of the town's finances, including a projected new growth figure of only $350,000 and free cash reserves that have dropped from $2.5 million in FY23 to roughly $1.2 million. The board separately ratified a $7.69 million bond sale at a 3.51 percent blended rate, with Treasurer-Collector Linda Cole crediting a freshly reaffirmed AAA rating from Standard and Poor's for drawing nine competitive bids. Both a Noise Control Bylaw citizens petition and a Wheelwright Park cell tower petition were voted down 4-0 by the Select Board and 9-0 by Advisory, with Member David Farrag warning that rescinding the tower contract would expose the town to breach-of-contract litigation. The board also adopted a debt exclusion ballot question for the 135 King Street public safety building, to be put before voters at the May 9 Annual Town Election.