Beauregard Announces Plan to End FY27 Furloughs, Add School Funds

METHUEN — Mayor Neil Perry Beauregard is pushing legislation to eliminate unpaid employee furloughs for fiscal year 2027 while increasing the city's investment in public education, according to a City Hall announcement Wednesday, as public works crews also prepare for a round of mosquito spraying, a hazardous-waste collection day and a new curbside composting option this month.

TOWN HALL

Mayor Beauregard announced legislation aimed at ending unpaid furloughs for city employees in fiscal year 2027 and boosting investment in the public schools, according to the City Hall announcement. No additional details on the funding mechanism or dollar figures were released Wednesday.

The city will spray for mosquitoes at parks, playgrounds, athletic fields and school recreation areas Monday, July 20, from roughly 9 p.m. to midnight, with a Tuesday, July 21 rain date, the city said. Residents can also drop off household hazardous waste — but not construction debris, trash, recycling or yard waste — at the Transfer Station on Huntington Avenue Saturday, July 18, from 8 a.m. to noon. Separately, the city has opened preregistration for a new curbside composting program run with Black Earth Compost, aimed at cutting household waste.

The city will hold a Community Involvement Meeting July 29 to update residents on Community Development Block Grant programs. Free Summer Eats meals also remain available through the summer for children and teens 18 and under at four Methuen sites, with no registration, ID or proof of income required.

COMING UP

Monday, July 20: Circle of Hope Family Support Group. Wednesday, July 22: Zoning Board of Appeals regular meeting. Thursday, July 23: Methuen Retirement Board meeting, Charter Review Committee meeting, Historic District Commission meeting, and a Disability Pride Month flag-raising ceremony. Wednesday, July 29: City Hall's CDBG Community Involvement Meeting.