Select Board delays vote on lake committee charge

Select Board · Meeting of August 25, 2026

SHUTESBURY — The Shutesbury Select Board postponed a vote on a revised charge for the Lake Wyola Advisory Committee after residents raised questions about boundaries and staff voting rights. Town Administrator Haley said the ex-officio dam keeper and emergency management director seats cannot vote under town policy, "because it has a direct impact on their work, their working relationships, certainly financial and legal matters." Wyola Drive resident Charlene Galinsky pressed on whether Lake Wyola Association members could serve; the board confirmed only the group's executive officers are barred. Resident Tom Seifert and committee member Jennifer Wallace urged the board to pin down the lake's watershed boundary using a Franklin Regional Council of Governments map before finalizing which applicants qualify for three reserved resident seats.

The board voted 3-0 only to adjourn, deferring the charge vote to its September 1 meeting.

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Source: the Select Board meeting of August 25, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.