Middleton Select Board Ratifies AFSCME DPW Contract, Approves Municipal Complex Changes

MIDDLETON -- January 6, 2026, Middleton Select Board ratifies AFSCME DPW contract and approves $206,000 in municipal complex amendments. The board unanimously ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with the AFSCME DPW union at its January 6 meeting following a closed executive session, with Town Administrator Justin Duffany, returning from parental leave, noting the contract will be funded at the May annual town meeting and praising the DPW union for again being first across the finish line. The board also approved three municipal complex contract actions totaling roughly $206,423: a $27,958 WT Rich change order for minor construction items, a $24,206.57 Akers amendment for security system changes, and a $154,258.71 Valley Communications increase for broadcasting technology installed while walls and ceilings were open. The board opened the warrant for the May 12, 2026 annual town meeting, with the citizen petition deadline set for March 21 and the warrant closing March 24. Turkey Trot co-organizers Courtney Lee and Michelle Debonis distributed $30,000 in proceeds from the 895-participant race, up from $26,000 in 2024, to Neighbors in Need, the Flint Library, the Council on Aging, veterans, the food pantry, and youth sports. The meeting's longest segment honored outgoing COA Director Jillian Smith, who received a formal board resolution after more than six years of service before departing for a position in Salem, New Hampshire.