Hampden weighs water district expansion to cut Academy Hall heating costs

Select Board · Meeting of February 3, 2026

Hampden Select Board opens talks on water district expansion and rebuffs vague Wilbraham school facilities plan. At the February 3 joint Select Board and Board of Health meeting, commissioners from the town's water district outlined a proposal to connect a small cluster of properties — a church, parsonage, and two residences — currently served by a standalone well at Academy Hall to the main district line, at a rough estimated cost of $10,000 to $15,000, with the new pump station expected online in spring 2026. Select Board member Don said he opposes early discussions on a Wilbraham Finance Committee proposal for shared regional school facilities management, noting Hampden has spent approximately $134,000 over the past decade on school maintenance the regional agreement should have covered at 80 percent — "too nebulous," he said, adding he had "no interest in spending an hour and a half every couple of weeks" on it.

The board heard a preview of spring Town Meeting warrant articles from town representative Sherry, including a confirmed North Road docking article and a tentative conservation parcel acquisition abutting Minnechaug Mountain land. The board voted 2-1, with Kevin Roth opposed, to enter executive session for collective bargaining talks with the highway union.

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