West Newbury Select Board orders roof rebid, advances retiree health insurance study

Select Board · Meeting of January 22, 2026

West Newbury Select Board moves toward retiree health insurance increase and orders a roof rebid at a $100,000 cap. The board Thursday directed staff to submit detailed questions to actuarial consultant KMS after reviewing a study showing the long-term life-cycle cost of raising the town's retiree health insurance contribution — currently at the state minimum of 50 percent — would range from roughly $345,000 for a 5-point increase to nearly $1.1 million for a 15-point increase, while the one-year fiscal year 2027 budget impact would be only $7,500 to just over $22,000. Member Christopher Wile pressed for clarity on the disconnect between the annual and life-cycle figures: "The numbers in the second chart scared the heck out of me." On the public safety building roof, the board rejected a $195,000 metal-roof bid and directed a new procurement for asphalt shingles capped at $100,000, with a new Town Meeting article to follow.

The board also unanimously authorized a MIA wellness grant application and declared a Wellington upright piano surplus, leaving its disposition to the town's procurement officer.

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Source: the Select Board meeting of January 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.