Finance Committee Discusses Spending for Essential City Services.
The Gardner Finance Committee met on January 28, 2026. Listen to the entire meeting on any device, CLICK PLAY.
Reviewed was a request from the Gardner Fire Department for $35,200 to match a Federal grant of $330,000 for badly needed radios.
Also on the agenda: A direct replacement for a marked interceptor for the Gardner PD, an unmarked Hyundai to replace an aging 2012 Ford Taurus used for administrative and investigative purposes, and a pickup truck to serve as a mobile command vehicle, allowing officers to transport equipment like radar trailers and secure emergency scenes with cones and signs.
Also reviewed: Curbside Waste and Recycling contract with E.L. Harvey providing the most reasonable option out of 4 responses received and Website Hosting with Civic Plus, the current vendor, the only one responding.
Noted: City is already projecting a deficit of $175,000 to $185,000 in its snow and ice removal budget. The Mayor provided an update on the boiler issues at Gardner City Hall, revealing that City Hall had lacked adequate carbon monoxide detector and had no smoke detectors (only heat detectors) and is taking immediate steps to install what’s needed.
Also addressed: Internet outages: The committee discussed a problem where internet service was shut off at four city locations: two at City Hall, one at the DPW, and one at the Youth Center. The cause was identified as a failure to pay bills over a period of time. To prevent future service disruptions that halt city business, the Mayor announced a plan to implement a new system for tracking and managing bills. A concrete example of this approach is consolidating the city’s 40 separate cell phone bills into a single, streamlined account, making payments easier to manage and harder to miss.