Lanesborough Finance Committee Reviews McCann Tech School Roof and Window Debt Plan

LANESBOROUGH — October 6, 2025 — Lanesborough Finance Committee hears McCann Tech roof and window debt pitch, eyes November split tax rate data. Business manager Melanie Meden of the Northern Berkshire Vocational Regional School District told the four-member Finance Committee Monday that the MSBA has approved an Accelerated Repair Project for McCann Technical School's 1997 roof and original 1964 single-pane windows, with the Massachusetts School Building Authority capping reimbursement at $9.9 million against a total estimated project cost that leaves roughly $6.8 million to be shared among nine member municipalities. Lanesborough's 10.33 percent share would yield a peak annual payment of just over $72,000 in FY28 under a 15-year borrowing at 3.5 percent, or just over $62,000 under a 20-year term at 3.8 percent — a difference Meden said amounts to roughly $84,000 in total interest savings for the town over the shorter term. All nine member communities must authorize the borrowing, and a single community's refusal would halt the project entirely. No override vote is required in Lanesborough because the debt is absorbed into the town's regular district assessment. In a separate agenda item, Finance Committee members Julie Baker and Vera Farrell reported that a follow-up meeting with the town assessor produced no new split tax rate scenarios, because FY2026 valuations will not be finalized until the end of October — the committee plans to revisit the question at its November 3 meeting ahead of the Select Board's classification hearing.