Ayer Select Board Approves $10.4 Million Bond Sale and Town Meeting Warrant

AYER — April 7, 2026 — Ayer Select Board unanimously approves $10.4 million bond sale and 28-article town meeting warrant. The board voted Tuesday to accept a $10,405,000 general obligation bond awarded to Brownstone Investment Group LLC at a net interest rate of 3.2286 percent, with a premium of $925,456 returned to the town, bringing the total sale price to $11,330,456.30; S&P Global Ratings affirmed the town's AA-plus bond rating ahead of the sale. Town Manager Robert Pontbriand presented the fiscal year 2027 omnibus budget at $20,720,080, a 3.47 percent increase held well below the 5 percent target, with the Finance Committee voting unanimously 5 to 0 to recommend all financial articles. The board also voted unanimously to take under advisement a resident proposal, led by Lincoln Hill neighborhood resident Julianne Govang, to create a town ombudsman position to mediate between residents and town government — a discussion that drew an extended defense of staff conduct from Pontbriand, who said more than 1,600 emails on the Lincoln Hill development had been processed and that no law had been broken at the site. Director of Public Works Dan Van Shallwick reported that MassDOT's FAIR program will fund a Barnum Road bridge rehabilitation at slightly over $900,000 at no direct cost to the town, and that the West Main Street bridge lane shift to single-lane traffic is targeted for late April or early May.