Wrentham Town Meeting Approves Data Center Ban, Field Lights

WRENTHAM, MA — Voters backed a series of spending, zoning and personnel measures at Wrentham’s Annual Fall Town Meeting.

At King Philip Regional High School on Monday, voters approved all seven articles requiring action, including $350,000 for Little League field lighting, funding for a new firefighters’ contract and a prohibition on data centers in every zoning district.

Recreation And Fire Department Funding

The field lighting money will come from Community Preservation Fund accounts and pay to light one of two new Little League fields under construction at the William Rice Recreation Complex. The fields will replace facilities at the Sweatt Recreation Complex that will be displaced by the Roderick Elementary School replacement project.

Voters also approved $135,000 for the Wrentham Fire Union contract in fiscal 2027. The town will raise and appropriate $99,225 and transfer another $35,775 from ambulance receipts. The contract was not settled before voters approved the annual budget in the spring.

Data Centers Prohibited Townwide

A zoning amendment defined data centers and prohibited them in all town zoning districts. The definition excludes small server rooms or closets that support another principal use.

Police Hiring Age Restriction Repealed

Another article eliminated a hiring rule that prevented Wrentham from appointing police officers age 32 or older.

Town officials said the restriction, adopted in 2002, had made it difficult to recruit experienced officers through lateral transfers from non-civil service departments.

Alcohol License Deadline Extension Sought

Voters authorized the Select Board to seek state approval to extend the deadline for issuing seven additional alcohol licenses in the Downtown Village Zones and Stonewall Boulevard area.

The proposed deadline is Jan. 3, 2031, replacing an authorization scheduled to expire in January 2028.

Metacomet Greenway Funding Extended

Town Meeting also extended the spending deadline for $200,000 previously approved for the Metacomet Greenway Engineering Design Study. The money will remain available through Dec. 31, 2028 as the delayed Massachusetts Department of Transportation project moves forward.

Bylaw Titles, Volunteer Awards

Voters approved updates replacing outdated job titles in the town’s general bylaws, including changing “Town Administrator” to “Town Manager.”

The meeting also recognized the Wrentham Food Pantry as the 2026 Adult Volunteer of the Year Group and Brendan Lawler as the Henry Carr Youth Volunteer of the Year.

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