Town figures share resolutions for 2026
Community members shared their New Year’s resolutions with the Observer.
Behind the green doors of Town Hall and across Weston, people are setting goals for the coming year.
The Observer asked a number of town officials and community members what resolutions they have for Weston in 2026, and answers ranged from advancing capital projects and public safety goals to New Year’s cleaning and connecting more with residents.
We share their responses, which have been edited for clarity.
Finance Committee Chair Bharath Venkataraman
Finance Committee Chair Bharath Venkataraman said he hopes for community collaboration as the town works through several major projects.
“Seeing the big projects and discussions – the Select Board expansion, for example – and their corresponding challenges we have coming up, I wish for more constructive dialogue, a willingness to listen to each other, and more coordination between the various committees. I hope we all realize what a privilege it is to live in Weston and that we have much more in common than what divides us. For myself – and the Select Board and School Committee members – all I can ask is for a day to have more than 24 hours, and for everyone in town to vote strictly along Finance Committee recommendations!”
Select Board member Tom Palmer
Select Board member Tom Palmer has his sights set on making progress on some of Weston’s major projects.
“Goals for the New Year in the town include educating residents and bringing to Town Meeting a solution for the fire stations, making progress on the water tank project, improving cell phone service in town and getting the Josiah Smith Tavern restaurant open. On a personal front, I’d like to complete my car restoration project and improve my golf game.”
Fire Chief Justin Woodside
Fire Chief Justin Woodside is also thinking about the fire station as Annual Town Meeting approaches.
“We have a few things on our plate for 2026. First is to work on our fire station’s design funds. If supported at the Select Board level, the goal would be to ask for design funding for a new fire station at the May Town Meeting. Second is to see if we can install 26 additional lock boxes in 2026. Our lockbox program here at the Weston Fire Department has proven to be a success over the last 20 or so years, ensuring the fire department has access to a property in the event of an emergency where the owners are not home, or unable to get to the door for us.”
Police Chief Denis Linehan
Police Chief Denis Linehan wants to keep residents safer this year.
“We are hoping to reduce the number of traffic accidents in 2026 and to help reduce the number of reports of people being victims of scams.”
Weston Public Library Director Jennifer Warner
Library Director Jennifer Warner will be busy both at work and at home with plans to clean up the library and improve her knitting and writing skills.
“The library’s New Year’s resolution is to get in shape! We’ll be weeding unwanted items in order to make room for new and great things coming in 2026!”
Recreation Director Chris Fitzgerald
Recreation Director Chris Fitzgerald said the department’s 2026 focus is on long-term planning and continuing to welcome residents to its programs.
“The Recreation Department goals for the New Year are to finish work with [the] committee on [the] Open Space and Recreation Plan [to] finalize its plan renewal with the state, resulting in a 10-year plan for the town, [to] expand program offerings to better serve older children and adults, [to] expand camp offerings and to continue working with the Council on Aging, Library, and the Arts and Innovation Center to coordinate programming.”
Town Planner Imai Aiu
Town Planner Imai Aiu is looking forward to hearing from residents in the upcoming year. Weston is putting together a Unified Master Plan to help guide the town’s decisions and residents will be asked for comments.
“I would like to put out a survey for our Unified Plan and have so many residents respond to it that we rival Alix Earle (or some other famous TikTok person) on online popularity!”
Weston Observer board of directors President Charlie Cuneo
Weston Observer board of directors President Charlie Cueno, said he hopes residents will come together over the next year.
“My hope is that Weston continues to connect as a caring community.”
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