Board Tables RFP For Gilbertville School Building
Hardwick's Select Board clashed over whether to speed up payoff of the town's fire truck debt during a lengthy budget-review session. Clerk Zachary E.
Select Board · Meeting of May 11, 2026
Hardwick's Select Board clashed over whether to speed up payoff of the town's fire truck debt during a lengthy budget-review session. Clerk Zachary E. Spencer said the town could save $90,000 to $100,000 in interest by applying principal a year earlier than scheduled, warning the current interest-only structure means "people right now aren't really contributing to the cost of this fire truck." Chair Jeffrey Schaaf and Vice Chair William Tinker defended the $860,000 bond's existing 15-year schedule, which carries $355,278 in total interest, as consistent with town debt policy.
Library Director Julie warned that cuts below the state's $97,514.69 minimum appropriation requirement would cost Hardwick's libraries their certification and roughly $8,749.83 in annual state aid. The board also declared a police cruiser and an electric vehicle surplus and tabled a preservation covenant for the former Gilbertville school building.
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Source: the Select Board meeting of May 11, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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