Select Board Shifts Highway Wages to Cover Shortfall

Select Board · Meeting of June 3, 2026

Brookfield's Select Board shifted highway payroll into a road account after finding the highway department had no money left to pay bills. Board members said the department owes vendors, with one saying, "They're out of money. They have zero money to pay bills," and another admitting, "I'm kicking and not paying their electric bills." The board reclassified roughly $55,000 to $60,537 in wages tied to the Gay Road reconstruction project to free up operating funds, voted to post an interim and permanent highway superintendent job at $85,000 to $92,000, and appointed Bruce Clark to oversee the Gay Road project's closeout.

Board member Richard A. Chaffee recused himself from a vote appointing a cemetery-project representative because his son had submitted a bid, and the board separately awarded a $19,975 cemetery milling contract to Chaffee Landscaping, the lowest of three bids. The board also referred security-camera footage of after-hours highway department activity to police.

In the full story:

• Annual Town Meeting Warrant Ratification
• Shea Property Catch Basin and School Water Runoff
• Gay Road Reconstruction Project Closeout
• Chapter 90 Reimbursement Status
• Cemetery Project: Representative Appointment and Milling Bid
• Interim and Permanent Highway Superintendent Position
• Highway Operations and Budget Shortfall
• Assessor's Office Transition
• Contract Signings
• After-Hours Activity at Highway Department
• Executive Session
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,279 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of June 3, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.