Westborough Police Seek $282,000 for Mobile Command Van at Town Meeting

Town Meeting · Meeting of March 13, 2026

Westborough Police Chief Todd Minardi is asking Annual Town Meeting to approve $282,000 in free cash for a mobile command vehicle under Capital Article 12D. The request, previewed on a community access TV program hosted by Alan Edinburgh, former Select Board member and Westborough Affordable Housing Trust chair, and Lisa Edinburgh, former School Committee chair, covers the town's share of a $367,000 specially outfitted Ford van — the balance funded by a $35,000 grant and a $50,000 contribution from the Westborough Police Foundation. Minardi said the department currently operates from a tent, a folding table, and equipment propped against a traffic cone, and that neighboring agencies' command vehicles could take "a half hour to an hour" to reach town.

He projected use across at least 48 identified annual incidents, estimating an annualized cost of roughly $19,000 over a 10-to-15-year service life. Town Meeting is set for March 21 at Westborough High School at 9 a.m.

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Source: the Town Meeting meeting of March 13, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.