Millbury Sets Nov. 12 Special Town Meeting

Select Board · Meeting of September 22, 2026

Millbury sets Nov. 12 special town meeting, tables 40% gas rate hike. The Select Board unanimously scheduled a special town meeting for 7 p.m. Nov. 12 at the junior/senior high school to address a FEMA-driven floodplain bylaw fix and a solar zoning update, with Planning Director Victor Panack warning the town's bylaws must be compliant "or we potentially are no longer eligible" for federal flood insurance.

Panack was also named the town's point person under a new state clean-energy permitting process that took effect Oct. 1. Separately, the board tabled a proposed five-year natural gas contract with Direct Energy that would raise the town's rate to $10.69 per decatherm, up roughly 40 percent from $7.48, after members pushed to seek competing quotes before the Oct. 8 meeting. Police Chief Brian Lewis reported investigative caseloads up 25 percent, and Town Clerk Nicola O'Brien won approval for reduced early-voting hours ahead of the Nov. 3 election, noting just 131 of over 11,000 voters used early voting in September's primary.

In the full story:

• The deliberation
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 4,140 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of September 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.