Freetown Select Board Votes to Retain 8-Inch Sewer Force Main

FREETOWN — March 4, 2024 — Freetown Select Board unanimously backs larger sewer pipe option and hears police survey results. The board voted Monday to retain an existing 8-inch epoxy-lined sewer force main rather than replace it with a narrower pipe, a decision officials said will cost less overall and preserve capacity for future development including a proposed 72-unit subdivision and potential cannabis facility flows. A consultant identified as Mr. Rendes told the board that slip-lining the 8-inch main with a 6-inch HDPE pipe is physically impossible given joint geometry. Separately, Police Chief Rose presented results of a 413-response community survey showing more than 80 percent support for a school resource officer and roughly 70 percent support for a drone program, with the chief noting a prior mutual aid drone deployment took 30 to 40 minutes to arrive before locating a missing child within five to 10 minutes of launch. The board also approved a $9,877 asbestos abatement contract at Town Hall and accepted $1,100 in donations for an April 20 Earth Day event.