Auburn Select Board Appoints New Town Counsel in Contested 3-2 Vote

AUBURN — April 13, 2026 — Auburn Select Board appoints new town counsel in a 3-2 split and orders a formal DEP contamination inquiry. The board voted Monday to replace its General Town Counsel, accepting the bid of Mead, Talerman & Costa for a one-year term with two possible one-year extensions, over the objections of Chair Anne Cavanaugh and Member Sara Rufli, who cited three or four active lawsuits pending with existing counsel and Town Manager Dori Vecchio's warning that the budgeted $100,000 increase in the Law Department would be insufficient to cover the cost of switching firms. The board also voted 4-0 to direct Vecchio to draft a formal letter to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection requesting an investigation into potential historic contamination of groundwater and wetlands from a former industrial property abutting Main Street, with copies to the state and federal legislative delegations; Vice Chair Todd Kirrane, who brought the item, said informal town outreach had produced "no assistance from the state" and that a formal written request was needed to put the matter on the public record. On FY27 budget amendments, Vecchio presented changes including a $75,000 decrease in the DPW sewer budget, a $72,800 reduction in pension costs after the increase percentage fell from 14 to 13.2 percent, and a fire department restructuring that adds a co-op student and junior fleet mechanic ahead of an earlier-than-expected mechanic retirement, funded through CPE funds and ambulance receipts. The board voted 5-0 to recommend approval of five Annual Town Meeting warrant articles, including the FY27 operating and capital budgets and a citizens' petition for $550,000 in additional roadway funding, ahead of the May 5 Town Meeting.