City Council Preview: Monday, July 6, 2026
Two public hearings, an earlier start, and a different building than usual
Written by: Dan Shibilia
Links to original agendas
Public Hearing on Cooper Lane: Agenda
Public Hearing on National Grid Dig: Agenda
Full Agenda
We interrupt “Hot Girl Summer" to bring you some serious City business. Monday is a busy night for the council and it is not happening at the usual spot. This meeting is at the Methuen High School Media Center, not the Great Hall in the Searles Building where the Council normally meets, due to a broken elevator.
There are two public hearings scheduled before the regular meeting even begins, so the night starts earlier than usual. The first hearing is set for 5:30 p.m., the second for 5:45 p.m. The regular meeting agenda itself lists a 6:00 p.m. start in the body of the document, though someone didn't update the entire document before posting so there is a discrepancy in the text.
Public Hearing One, 5:30 P.M.
This public hearing is your chance to give your opinion on the acceptance of Cooper Lane as a public way.
TR-25-75. A Resolution Ordering the Methuen City Council's Intent to Lay Out Cooper Lane as a Public Way. The layout plan is on file in the City Clerk's office. View the resolution
Why it matters: When a road gets laid out and accepted as a public way, the city takes over responsibility for maintaining it, including plowing, repairs, and eventual repaving. Cooper Lane is currently a private way, which usually means the people living on it are responsible for its upkeep. Anyone who lives on or near Cooper Lane, or anyone interested in how private roads become public ones, has a reason to attend this hearing. The same item returns later in the meeting, under Unfinished Business, for a Council vote.
Public Hearing Two, 5:45 P.M.
Public Service Grant #31043582, Temple Drive, Westgate Circle, Jewel Circle. National Grid is requesting permission to replace existing direct buried cable with a conduit system. The project involves a directional drill installing 1,073 feet of 2 inch by 2 inch conduit and 1,716 feet of 1 inch by 2 inch conduit, along with 6 pull boxes and 3 handholes across Temple Drive, Westgate Circle, and Jewel Circle.
Why it matters: Utility companies need the City Council's approval, called a grant of location, before digging in or working within a public street. If this is approved, residents on these three streets should expect construction crews and some disruption in the coming months. This is routine but necessary work to upgrade underground electric infrastructure in that neighborhood.
Regular City Council Meeting
Now, we get into the main event.
It starts as they all do… roll call and Acceptance of the Agenda. Typically, this would be irrelevant and mundane, but lately this has proven more controversial as Councilor Santos has used it to help friends “jump the line” to avoid waiting for their item to come up on the agenda.
Next, we have the Pledge of Allegiance, Invocation, and Moment of Silence, followed by Public Participation. This is your chance to speak on anything, whether it is on the agenda or not. If any item in this preview concerns you, this is the moment to say so in person or by signing up in advance through the city’s usual public comment process.
With no Organizational Business, they will head straight into Reading and Acceptance of Minutes from Previous Meetings. The Council will accept minutes from the May 26, 2026 special meeting on the FY27 municipal budget, second read, and from the June 8, 2026 regular meeting. This is a formality that makes those meetings part of the official record.
Now, into the real stuff…
7. Proclamations and Correspondence
A citation for Victor Rivera, Jr. It doesn't say who the councilor is nominating him as it has in the past. It doesn't say why he is deserving, whether he is a City Employee or a local business owner. There is no further detail listed on the agenda which is kind of disappointing when it comes to transparency.
8. Consideration of Appointments
Lieutenant Michael Ferris, nominated for Deputy Chief.
Firefighter Eric Moreau, nominated for Lieutenant.
These two are procedural. They are going to be contractually required and a continuation of the shift of titles left by the passing of Jimmy Mac. I expect these to go without much push back at all.
Jordan Normandia, nominated for Veterans Service Officer.
Until close of business Tuesday, Jordan was the Mayor’s Constitutive Services Director (although the title was/is a point of contention for the council). I was alerted shortly after the posting of this agenda by an anonymous source that there is a FIOA delayed for the internet history of Jordan’s computer. It may be nothing. It may be the City protecting it’s friends. This one will be interesting to watch.
9. Presentations, Projects, Department Updates
By request from the last meeting. we will get an update and presentation on the Trash Coordinator position and the progress made to address the solid waste and tipping fee shortfall.
Why it matter…
The city has been working through a budget gap tied to trash collection and tipping fees, the cost of disposing of waste at the landfill or transfer station. The Council previously approved $850,000 in free cash to help close that gap. This presentation should show what that money and that position have accomplished so far.
10. Mayor's Report
The Mayor typically uses this time for updates, announcements, and upcoming events. No specific topics are listed on the agenda in advance.
11. CAFO Report
Request for an update on Searles Estate expenses and revenues (requested by Chair Soto).
12. Requests of Councilors
This section is a running list of information requests from individual councilors to city staff. None of these are votes. They are questions, but they often preview what may come back as formal Council action later.
Does the Methuen Housing Authority currently receive trash collection services through the city's municipal trash contract? (Req. of Chair Soto)
This was addressed at the last meeting. Not sure why it’s back.
Update from the CAFO and City Solicitor regarding the implementation and status of the city's adoption of M.G.L. Chapter 200A, Section 9A, relating to the disposition and recovery of abandoned and unclaimed property, known as tailings. (Req. of Clr. Valley)
Why it matters: Tailings are unclaimed funds, such as uncashed checks, held by the city. This law allows the city to recover and use money that would otherwise sit unclaimed indefinitely.
Request that the Mayor and City Solicitor provide an update regarding the Rail Trail depot overhangs, including the status of potential acquisition or transfer of ownership to the city, available legal options, and whether grant opportunities may be pursued to preserve and repair these historic structures. (Req. of Clr. Valley)
Things to remember here. The Laborors Union puts money into elections. They want their building fixed but they don’t want to do it. These overhangs were to be destroyed decades ago. Since nobody wants to do the research… we did. You can read about it AND see the supporting doc here… Depot Article. This is a waste of time and the City should be embarrassed it’s even come this far.
Update on the feasibility study for the public safety buildings and DPW. (Req. of Clr. Santos)
Request for the first report from the Sanitation and Zero Waste Coordinator, including trash related fines and tonnage. (Req. of Clr. DiZoglio and Clr. Drew)
This is connected directly to the Trash Coordinator update earlier in the meeting, asking for actual numbers on enforcement and how much trash the city collects. Liekly to be duplicative.
Request for information regarding a non residential use operating at 4 Alderbrook Lane. (Req. of Clr. DiZoglio and Chair Soto)
This suggests a possible zoning or land use concern at that address but I think what the Council is going to find is that this is a residence for clergy and nothing more.
Buildings Audit RFP status update. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
City employee email signature standardization. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
Fire Department fees update, covering lift fees and ambulance rate adjustments. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
Connects directly to TO-26-18 later in the meeting, which would formally raise these fees.
Update on Tyler Financial and the MUNIS implementation plan date. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
MUNIS is the city's financial and accounting software system. This tracks progress toward getting it fully operational. It’s a massive project and these never go on schedule. Esepcially when you understaff.
HHSI permit fees review and update status. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
Request for a formal presentation and discussion on the Trash Coordinator position and progress made since the Council approved the $850,000 free cash request for the solid waste and tipping fee shortfall. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
This covers the same subject as item 9's presentation, requested here as a follow up discussion item.
SeeClickFix clean up and follow up. (Clr. Drew)
SeeClickFix is the app residents use to report potholes, illegal dumping, and similar issues. This asks the city to review how those reports are being closed out. Personally, this app has proved useless. Items go in and die there or are closed without action. Someone should ask what we are paying for this.
Boards and Commissions appointment and reappointment status update, including current vacancies, expired terms, members serving beyond their allowed term or maximum service time, and the administration's timeline for filling or replacing those positions. (Req. of Clr. Drew)
Request that the City Solicitor provide an update on the ownership of the Depot Overhang associated with the Laborers Union building, including current ownership status and whether any title or deed information has been identified. (Req. of Clr. Valley and Clr. Drew)
A second, more specific overhang ownership question tied to the Rail Trail item above. Why… just ask the questions once. This seems like a pressure push fromt he Laborers Union.
13. Public Service
Grants
Public Service Grant, Temple Drive, Westgate Circle, Jewel Circle. Same National Grid project covered in Public Hearing Two above. This is where the Council discusses the projects, hopefully, before voting.
Licenses
Solar Project License Agreement, Tenney Grammar School, 75 Pleasant Street, between the City of Methuen and Solect Energy Development LLC.
Solar Project License Agreement, Comprehensive Grammar School, 100 Howe Street, between the City of Methuen and Solect Energy Development LLC.
Why it matters: These license agreements allow a solar company to install and operate solar panels at two Methuen schools. Paired with the Power Purchase Agreements listed under Contracts below, this is a common way for a city to get solar power without paying upfront construction costs, agreeing instead to buy the electricity the panels produce over time.
Contracts
C-27-1 Brox Industries, Inc. Bituminous concrete for the city's FY26 paving season, $111,425.00, with a winter months rate of $55.00 for December 1 through March 31.
C-27-2 Kitchen and Floor Décor, Inc. Removal of carpets and cove base and installation of VCT tile and cove base at Marsh Grammar School.
So long overdue.
C-27-3 Valerio, Dominello & Hillman, LLC. Legal services contract for fiscal year 2027.
Simple renewal for overflow work.
C-27-4 Power Purchase Agreement between the City of Methuen and Solect Energy Development LLC for Tenney Grammar School.
C-27-5 Power Purchase Agreement between the City of Methuen and Solect Energy Development LLC for Comprehensive Grammar School.
Why it matters: This was a project that start back when I was on School Committee. The goal is to reduce the electricity bill. By all projections this should be a big win over the next 20 years for the schools so long as the City Solicitor covered our bases.
14. Other Officers and Committee Reports
No specific items are listed under this heading on the agenda but I am sure someone will chime in.
15. Unfinished Business
Resolutions
TR-25-75. Resolution for the City Council to lay out and accept Cooper Lane as a public way. Removed from the table.
Why it matters: This is the vote that follows Public Hearing One. If the Council votes yes, Cooper Lane officially becomes a city maintained public way.
TR-26-53. A Resolution Requesting that the Mayor and Chief Administrative and Financial Officer Conduct an Insurance Review and Obtain Competitive Quotes and Options for City Insurance Coverage to Promote Transparency, Fiscal Responsibility and Accountability. Sponsored by Councilor Yanilda Santos.
Why it matters: This asks the city to shop around for insurance coverage rather than automatically renewing with its current provider. Competitive quotes can reveal whether the city is paying more than it needs to for coverage, which affects the budget that taxpayers ultimately fund.
This is a check the box exercise. The Mayor and PEC already announced they plan to move to GIC. This is just the council approving those efforts. Now that the PEC, which means the the unions, are on board.. everyone should be a yes.
Ordinances
TO-26-12. Ordinance to amend the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance to rezone a parcel of land fronting on Arcadia Street for commercial improvement. Removed from the table.
A few things merit a raised eyebrow. The petition dresses up what is essentially a private benefit, expanding a liquor store from roughly 2,000 to 4,200 square feet, as a "valid public purpose," and its spot-zoning defense leans heavily on the parcel being tiny and at a district border, which is exactly the kind of framing applicants use when the public rationale is thin. Notably, the applicant concedes the rezoning won't actually cure the setback non-conformities and will still require further ZBA relief for a larger building sited close to residential abutters, so this reads less like fixing an odd lot and more like assembling entitlements step by step. It's also worth flagging that K&K/Patel owns both the Merrimack and Arcadia parcels, which conveniently lets them characterize impacts on residential abutters as minimal while shuffling their own lot lines, and the attached exhibits (survey fragment, murky renderings) don't really let a reviewer verify the shape, scale, or buffer claims independently.
TO-26-16. An Ordinance Amending Section 9-52, Trash and Recyclables Collection, of the Methuen Municipal Code. Sponsored by Councilor Ryan DiZoglio, as amended.
Why it matters: This is the ordinance that sets the actual rules for how trash and recycling collection works in Methuen. Given the tipping fee shortfall discussed earlier in the meeting and over the last few months, changes here could affect collection rules, bin limits, or enforcement for every household in the city.
TO-26-17. An Ordinance Amending Section 8-7, Municipal Charges Lien, of the Methuen Municipal Code. Sponsored by Councilor Ryan DiZoglio.
Why it matters: A municipal lien is a legal claim the city can place on a property when a bill, such as trash fees or a code violation, goes unpaid. This changes how and when the city can collect unpaid charges by placing a lien on a property. This is to ensure we collect for trash bins, plain and simple.
New Business
Resolutions
TR-26-67. Resolution Declaring the Pleasant Valley School Property, 180 Pleasant Valley Street, Parcel ID #1109-78E-45, as Surplus Property and Authorizing the Same for Sale and Redevelopment.
TR-26-68. Resolution Declaring the Currier School Property, 36 Boylston Street, Parcel ID #914-105-63, as Surplus Property and Authorizing the Same for Sale and Redevelopment.
Why it matters: Declaring a former school building surplus is the first legal step toward selling it or opening it up for redevelopment. These are two more former school properties heading toward a new use, and residents near either site will want to follow the process as it continues. Both properties are in great disrepair and need to be gutted if not demolished. This is a great decision. I just hope Councilor DiZoglio doesn’t say anything illegal when discussion things again.
TR-26-69. Resolution Authorizing Acceptance of $15,795.31 for Fiscal Year 2027 Commonwealth of Massachusetts State 911 Emergency Medical Dispatch Grant.
TR-26-70. Resolution Authorizing Acceptance of $168,186.09 for Fiscal Year 2027 Commonwealth of Massachusetts State 911 Department Training Grant.
Why it matters: Both are state grants funding training and equipment for the people who answer 911 calls in Methuen. Accepting them brings outside money into the city instead of relying on local tax dollars.
TR-26-71. Resolution Authorizing Transfer Between Various FY26 General Fund Personal Services and Other Expenses Budgets. EPA Requested.
Why it matters: Budget transfers move already approved money from one line item to another to cover shortfalls or unexpected costs before the fiscal year closes. This is the risk we run by level funding electric and fuel. This was just poor budgeting the first go around. Although, systematic to avoid layoffs, we are no stuck covering it. It’s a hopeful game we play annually.
TR-26-73. A Resolution Declaring the Property at 30 Railroad Street, Parcel ID #716-14-16, as Surplus Property and Authorizing the Same for Sale and Redevelopment.
Why it matters: A third surplus property declaration on this agenda, this one for a non school parcel. Same effect: it clears the way for the city to sell or redevelop the site.
TR-26-74. Resolution Transferring Funds from the Edwin J. Castle Fund to the Methuen Literacy Project at Nevins Library and to Methuen Public Schools' CTE Early Childhood Care program.
Why it matters: The Edwin J. Castle Fund is a city held trust fund. This resolution directs some of that money toward literacy programming at the library and an early childhood care program in the schools' career and technical education track.
Ordinances
TO-26-18. Ordinance to Amend Section 8-5A of the Municipal Code of the City of Methuen to increase ambulance rates and charges and establish a new lift assist fee.
Why it matters: This ordinance does two things to the Methuen Fire Department’s ambulance fee schedule under Section 8-5A of the municipal code.
First, it raises the base ambulance transport rates across all three service tiers while leaving the mileage charge unchanged at $50. Basic Life Support Emergency goes from $1,489.24 to $1,750.00 (about a 17.5% increase), Advanced Life Support Emergency goes from $1,768.48 to $2,125.00 (about 20%), and the higher ALS tier (”Emergency 2”) goes from $2,559.64 to $2,975.00 (about 16%). The stated rationale is simply that the cost of running the EMS program has risen and the city wants the fee structure to offset those costs.
Second, it creates a brand-new $500-per-incident “lift assist” fee. This targets a specific situation: when the Fire Department is called to help lift someone who has fallen but doesn’t need to be transported to a hospital. Importantly, the fee is narrowly scoped to assisted living and nursing home facilities and explicitly excludes private residential requests, so a resident who calls because a family member fell at home would not be billed, but a nursing home that repeatedly calls for lifting help would be.
A couple of things worth noting for the review. The ambulance rate hikes are largely academic to residents with insurance, since Medicare, MassHealth, and private insurers pay a negotiated or federally set allowed amount regardless of what the city “charges,” so raising the sticker rate mostly affects the ceiling for reimbursement rather than what a typical patient pays out of pocket. The lift assist fee is the more substantive policy change and the one that deserves discussion: it is essentially a decision to bill commercial elder-care facilities for a service the department currently absorbs, which is defensible as cost recovery, but $500 flat with no tiering and the “not to include private residential requests” carve-out invites questions about how staff will consistently distinguish a billable lift assist from an emergency call, and whether facilities might hesitate to call for help to avoid the charge. One drafting note also stands out: the ordinance text labels the new fee “List Assistance” in the operative clause even though the table and title call it “Lift Assist,” which is the kind of typo worth fixing before adoption since it’s the actual code language.
That’s all she wrote… well except for the Execution session to approve old minutes and release them.
Executive Session
The Council will vote on whether to enter executive session under Exemption 7 of the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law, M.G.L. Chapter 30A, Section 21(a)(7). If it does, the Council will discuss and vote on the acceptance or disclosure of past executive session minutes from the following dates: February 21, 2017; June 11, 2018; September 24, 2018; October 29, 2018; July 26, 2019; August 14, 2019 (listed twice on the agenda); and September 25, 2019.
Why it matters: Executive session minutes are kept confidential when they are created, usually because they cover legal, personnel, or negotiation matters. Councils periodically review old executive session minutes to decide whether they can now be released publicly. The agenda notes that if the Council enters executive session, it will not reconvene in open session afterward, meaning the meeting ends there.
And that is really it now. See you after the meeting!
Watch live at methuen.gov/livestream
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YouTube: youtube.com/@MethuenMeetings
*I may need to update this if it changes due to the location change.