Westport's Town Hall Annex runs on a temporary water system as the Select Board weighs moving offices to the former high school
A temporary water system cost about $8,400, and each delivery costs $3,200. Monday's agenda pairs the annex with a possible move of offices to the old high school, and adds an update on the Coldwater culverts.
WESTPORT Water is back on at Westport's Town Hall Annex, through a temporary bulk system that needs paid deliveries. Town Administrator Chris Vitale told the Select Board in a report dated Oct. 16 that the system is running and the toilets are back in use. A state Department of Environmental Protection do-not-drink order is still in effect, and the sinks can't be used for handwashing until a final lab approval comes in, the report says.
The board takes up the building Monday, Oct. 19. Its agenda lists a "Discussion Regarding Town Hall Annex Building and Potential Relocation of Offices to the Former High School."
What it costs so far
The temporary system cost about $8,400 to set up, and each added water delivery costs $3,200, according to Vitale's report. To cut down on deliveries, the town will limit weekend use of the annex restrooms. The town has hired the engineering firm Kleinfelder, Vitale wrote, to study a permanent replacement well and draw up a scope of work, a cost estimate and a construction timeline. Kleinfelder is also working with Bristol Engineers on earlier well test results.
No total is set yet. Once the design and construction cost is known, Vitale wrote, "the Board will need to consider a reserve fund transfer to cover the temporary water system and permanent well replacement." Neither this report nor Vitale's Sept. 25 report says when the do-not-drink order was issued or why.
How we got here
The annex is at 856 Main Road. At the board's Sept. 14 meeting, Brewster Thornton Group Architects presented a plan to reuse the former high school in phases, so departments could move in as sections are renovated rather than waiting for one full renovation. Members of the public who spoke that night asked the board to keep the annex gym and stage available for community use and to consider the annex's tenants, including Codimonk Nursery School, the minutes say.
The architects said the building would be about 80% used under their concept. The second floor would hold the school after-school program and more shared space, with a new elevator, and the basement would get a recreation gym and locker rooms with their own entrance, the minutes say. A developer the consultants talked with said about 30 to 40 housing units would likely be needed to make a housing conversion work. The board voted 4-1, with Craig Dutra opposed, to have the architects price the revised plan without affordable housing and to include a study of the site's wells and septic system.
The minutes also record the wells question. The property has two wells, one of them out of service, and the consultants put a replacement pump at about $7,500 if needed. The board also discussed how far building code upgrades would reach as renovations are phased in, including a 30% threshold tied to the building's full and fair cash value; the consultants said that would be clearer after cost estimating, the minutes say. Vitale's Sept. 25 report said the architects had begun a phased plan with cost estimates, with more detail expected "in the coming weeks."
Also on Monday
The agenda also lists an engineering update on the Coldwater culverts, a vote on signing a joint letter from towns to the state on "Preserving Meaningful Local Planning in State Housing," and a pay adjustment for the public health nurse.
What happens next
Department capital requests for the fiscal 2028 plan are due Oct. 31. The Select Board, School Committee and Finance Committee will hold a joint budget workshop Nov. 16 at Westport Middle-High School, planned as a hybrid meeting, Vitale wrote. In his Sept. 25 report, he said he would be away at a conference from Oct. 15 to Oct. 22 and unable to attend the Select Board meeting during that period.
How to take part
The meeting starts at 6 p.m. in the second floor meeting room at Town Hall, 816 Main Road, and is recorded. The agenda lists no separate public comment period and no remote option; item 11 is titled comments and statements. Residents can attend in person or reach the Select Board office at 508-636-1006.
Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.
How we verified this
Every fact comes from the town's Oct. 19 Select Board agenda, the town administrator's Oct. 16 and Sept. 25 reports, and the board's approved Sept. 14 minutes and agenda, listed below. We read them on Oct. 18. We checked each date and weekday against a calendar and checked each claim against the documents. Not heard: no one was contacted.
Corrections
No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.
Sources (5)
- Select Board, Monday, October 19, 2026 (agenda)Town of Westport, posted Oct. 15, 2026 (file stamp). Annex and former high school item, Coldwater culverts, housing letter, nurse pay, place, time, office phone. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Town Administrator's Report for Select Board Meeting 10-19-2026Town of Westport, dated Oct. 16, 2026. Annex water system, costs, do-not-drink order, Kleinfelder, reserve fund transfer, capital plan deadline, Nov. 16 hybrid workshop. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Town Administrator's Report for Select Board Meeting 09-28-2026Town of Westport, dated Sept. 25, 2026. Old High School master plan update; administrator away Oct. 15 to 22. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Select Board Meeting Minutes, Monday, September 14, 2026 (approved, 22 pages)Town of Westport. Architects presentation, 4-1 vote, wells and septic, 30% threshold, public comments on the annex (pages 9 and 10). Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Select Board, Monday, September 14, 2026 (agenda)Town of Westport. Town Hall Annex address, 856 Main Road. Read Oct. 18, 2026.