Lexington Select Board Locks In Assumptions for $659.7M High School Tax Model

LEXINGTON -- August 18, 2025, Lexington Select Board advances $659.7 million high school project and votes unanimously on low-income solar contract and bulky-item waste fees. The board gave Finance Director Carolyn Kosnoff direction Monday to build a taxpayer-impact model using a median home value, a four percent interest rate, and $6.5 million in set-aside commercial new growth to offset debt service, with a full presentation planned for September 8 alongside a residential tax calculator. The MSBA schematic design package is due August 28, with a grant-setting MSBA board vote in late October and a debt exclusion ballot set for December 8; the current total project estimate stands at $659.7 million, with the town's modeled share at $547.7 million after an $111 million MSBA grant and other contributions. The board also unanimously approved the town manager's authority to execute a low-income community shared solar agreement that Select Board member Mark Sandin said would reduce electricity costs for energy-burdened residents on the community choice program, and approved a bulky-item fee schedule effective July 1, 2026, while sending the companion two-bin trash limit back to staff for a variance process to address large families and mobility-limited residents.