Select Board splits 2-1 over town administrator's plan

Select Board · Meeting of September 21, 2026

Marshfield Select Board splits 2-1 on town administrator's yearlong plan, advances two well-protection land buys. Chair Rick Smith and Clerk Chris Rohland outvoted Vice Chair Eric Kelley on a 12-month performance-expectations package for Town Administrator Ted Langell after Kelley objected to language tied to the board's schools MOU, saying, "I cannot in good conscience vote for something that I am opposed to." The board unanimously authorized purchase-and-sale agreements for a $610,000 parcel at 1 Proctor Street and a roughly 31-acre parcel off Holly Road, both in wellhead-protection areas, pending town meeting funding on October 19. That warrant also carries a $9,944,140 seawall project at Brant Rock and Ocean Bluff, which Kelley said should have come to the board sooner: "This should be your last line of defense, but the problem is we're using it as a front-line thing." A separate request for the town to reimburse Kelley $170.15 in towing fees drew no motion and was not voted on, after Smith argued it risked treating elected officials differently than other residents.

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Source: the Select Board meeting of September 21, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.