Holland Select Board Moves to Engineer Causeway Repairs, Restructure Lake Committee

HOLLAND -- February 26, 2019, Holland Select Board advances causeway engineering warrant and lake committee independence push. At a joint session with the Lake and Conservation Committee on February 26, the Select Board agreed to draft two warrant articles for the May Town Meeting: one to fund an engineering study of the lake causeway's repair or replacement, and one to convert the advisory LLC into a standalone independent board. A board member disclosed that negotiations for the Sickles property remain far apart on price, with a $50,000 grant tied to the acquisition expiring June 30. An LLC member proposed engaging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which manages roughly 200 million cubic yards of dredging annually, to oversee the causeway project and potentially unlock federal funding, an idea the board asked be vetted against Massachusetts Chapter 30B procurement requirements. The town's aquatic weed treatment contract with Solitude expires December 31, 2019, and members agreed to research state piggyback contracts before committing to a new RFP.