Natick Select Board Receives Split 8-7 Working Group Vote on Main Street Redesign

NATICK -- June 24, 2026, Natick Select Board hears a divided 8-7 working group vote recommending the $11 million hybrid Main Street redesign concept, with no board decision taken. The working group, which included residents, business owners, and town staff, endorsed the hybrid plan, which includes protected bike lanes, revised parking, and improved pedestrian infrastructure, as a recommendation to continue the design process, not as final approval; unresolved issues include emergency vehicle staging, delivery access, snow removal costs estimated at roughly $250,000 annually, and pedestrian-cyclist conflicts. Several town employee working group members, including representatives from the Police Department, DPW, and Engineering, voted no. Select Board member Bruce Evans said he was "not even close to being prepared" to advance the concept. In other action, the board voted 5-0 to decline a public request to commission a study seeking reclassification of the South Natick Dam, with DPW Director Bill Spratt warning that any delay would jeopardize more than $1 million in grant funding covering 90 percent of project costs. The board also heard from Natick Contributory Retirement Board Chair Michael Reardon and actuary Kathy Riley, who reported the system is projected to reach full funding in fiscal 2030 and ranked second in five-year investment returns among 106 Massachusetts pension funds at 9.5 percent annually. The Main Street project returns to the Select Board agenda July 8.