Dover Board Defers Intersection Vote, Seeks MassDOT Site Visit on Walpole Street

SHERBORN -- May 12, 2026, Dover Select Board defers intersection overhaul vote while pursuing MassDOT waiver on disputed sidewalk. The three-member board, Chair Robin Hunter, Dave Haviland, and Cam Hudson, stopped short of formally endorsing a $1.1 to $1.15 million reconstruction of the Center Street, Springdale Avenue, and Walpole Street intersection, funded largely by a $1 million MassDOT Local Bottleneck Reduction Program grant, after Haviland argued the plan "only fixes half" of the congestion problem by leaving Walpole Street unwidened. Consultant Kevin Dandrade of TEC Incorporated said traffic modeling projects a 27 percent reduction in intersection delays and a 60 percent cut in southbound Center Street evening delays, but confirmed MassDOT will not fund removal of an existing sidewalk adjacent to a gas station that board members say blocks additional lane capacity. Hunter said she had arranged an introduction to MassDOT's state traffic engineer to request a site visit and possible waiver. In separate unanimous votes, the board proclaimed Dover a Purple Heart town with annual observance on August 7, approved two Purple Heart street signs on Center Street, awarded a $311,387 three-year road preservation contract to Seal Coating Inc. DBA Indus of Braintree, authorized Dover police officers and Police Chief Joseph Vinci to work FIFA World Cup extra-duty details at Gillette Stadium, accepted a $2,125 MassDOT speed-sign grant, and declared a Level 1 mild drought restricting outdoor water use to one day per week.