Oakham Board of Selectmen Votes to Pursue Eminent Domain for Two Subdivision Roads

OAKHAM -- February 2, 2026, Oakham Board of Selectmen votes to place eminent domain road-acceptance article on special town meeting warrant. The board unanimously approved placing an article on a warrant for a special town meeting now tentatively set for February 9 that would authorize acquiring Old Schoolhouse Road and Skyline Drive, two private subdivision roads serving roughly 18 homes, by gift, purchase, or eminent domain. Town counsel at KP Law drafted the article and estimated its own legal fee at approximately $1,500, but a resident, Lucy DeLeo, warned that title searches on all abutting parcels could add $300 or more per search. Acceptance of the nine-tenths of a mile of roadway would make the town eligible for roughly $9,000 per year in additional Chapter 90 state highway funds. The board also sparred with Quabbin Regional School District officials over procurement responsibility for a $15,932.67 failed boiler control replacement at Oakham Center School, with the district's superintendent arguing the obligation rests with the town and a board member citing decades of prior practice in which district staff obtained quotes. Separately, the board granted informal approval for the school PTO to proceed with a hammock reading garden and a second Gaga ball pit using PTO funds, while directing a larger $50,000-plus asphalt repaving project back for a formal scope of work and compliant bids.