Sudbury Select Board sends $150,000 transportation article to May town meeting

SUDBURY — January 24, 2023 — Sudbury Select Board sends $150,000 transportation article to May warrant after testy debate. The board voted 5-0 Tuesday to forward the free cash request, which would extend a taxi-and-Uber ride program serving seniors and residents with disabilities that liaison Dan Carty said is running through roughly $11,000 to $12,000 per month. Chair Charles Russo and members Janie Dretler, Lisa Kouchakdjian, Jen Roberts and Carty approved the motion, but only after Dretler added a condition requiring board sign-off on the town meeting presentation — language Carty called "micromanaging" and "the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen this board do." The board separately authorized Interim Town Manager Maryanne Bilodeau to refile a single-use checkout bag bylaw that lapsed in the state legislature, and scheduled a Jan. 30 special meeting to decide a disputed late request to add audio-visual funding for the Fairbank Community Center, where Council on Aging Chair Jeff Levine said the existing $350,000 package leaves program rooms with rolling carts and no microphones.