Braintree Town Council Meeting 10.20.26

At the Braintree Town Council meeting of October 20, 2026, councilors considered a proposed operations and maintenance agreement for the Tri-Town Water Treatment Plant, which serves Braintree, Randolph, and Holbrook. The Ways and Means Committee gave it a unanimous favorable recommendation; the finance director described the agreement as defining Braintree’s responsibilities for staffing, maintenance, vendor payments, and plant operations, and requested authority for the mayor to execute it if there were no material changes. Braintree retained Westgroup Law to assist with review. The transcript does not capture a final council vote on the agreement or any contract amount. Councilors also discussed the existing Flock license-plate reader system and its contracts; a request to stop searches and terminate the contracts was raised, but the matter was tabled, with further information and a revised policy expected before the November 5 meeting.

The council unanimously adopted a temporary zoning moratorium on data centers, allowing time to study their effects on electricity, water, noise, and land use; discussion included possible future standards and a review around the nine-month mark. It also unanimously approved zoning amendments increasing the fine for violations from $50 to the statutory maximum of $300 and clarifying that certain profit-making events fall under prohibited commercial recreation in residential districts. A public hearing was held on a demolition-delay ordinance amendment, but no final vote on that amendment appears in the transcript. Councilors also announced receipt of the environmental impact report for a proposed MWRA pipeline through Braintree and invited public input on mitigation; no related procurement action was identified.