Natick Select Board Takes No Vote on Main Street Redesign

Select Board · Meeting of August 19, 2026

Natick Select Board spends two-plus hours on Main Street redesign, takes no vote. Chair Catherine Coughlin and members Bruce Evans, Cody Jacobs, and colleagues weighed the $11 million, MassDOT grant-funded project, debating parking loss, easements with downtown building owners, and a crash record showing 90 collisions from 2021 to 2025, nine with injuries. The Main Street Improvement Working Group had endorsed a "hybrid" design concept on an 8-7 vote; Coughlin stressed the board's pending vote is "not as full agreement with every element of the current design," quoting working group chair Jason Mancuso.

Members cited a projected $230,000 annual cost for bump-out-compatible snow removal and roughly $3 million to bury utility lines. The board scheduled a special meeting for September 9 at 6 p.m. to decide whether to advance a concept to 25 percent design.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,444 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of August 19, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.