Oakham Board of Selectmen Clears Mack 10-Wheeler Purchase, Debates Unplowed Subdivision Roads

OAKHAM -- November 24, 2025, Oakham Board of Selectmen authorizes $324,190 Mack 10-wheel plow truck purchase and hears urgent plea from subdivision road residents. The board voted unanimously Monday to allow Highway Superintendent Doug DeBruy to file a Chapter 90 project application for a new Mack 10-wheel combination plow and sander truck, replacing a 1996 International flagged as likely to fail its July 2026 inspection; a six-wheel alternative was priced at $279,373. The board also approved five seasonal plow drivers including returning workers Ryan McCaffrey, Sean Roden, and Glen Matt Derosian. Nearly an hour of public comment centered on Skyline Drive and Old Schoolhouse Road in the Longview Estates subdivision, where roughly 18 households have gone without formal town snow removal because the developer's attorney, Spillane and Spillane of Worcester, has not delivered required subdivision documents despite three years of certified letters from the town. Resident Peter Carboni cited Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 40, Section 6C and the legal concept of prescriptive road acceptance as potential workarounds, prompting board members to promise contact with town counsel Sherrin Everett by Tuesday morning. The board separately adopted Town Policy No. 25, requiring all appointed committee members to be registered voters and legal residents of Oakham.