Stoughton Select Board Continues SMAC Hearing as Settlement Talks Near Conclusion

STOUGHTON -- March 10, 2026, Stoughton Select Board continues SMAC public hearing to March 26 after executive session. The board voted unanimously 5-0 Tuesday to continue its October 9, 2025 public hearing on the Stoughton Media Access Corp. dispute to March 26, 2026 at 7:30 p.m., following a closed executive session on litigation strategy. Chair John Cady, returning to open session after roughly 35 minutes behind closed doors, told the public the town has received both a settlement agreement and an updated access agreement from SMAC, with both sides now conducting final reviews. "We are very much at the end of the line here, with everything looking very promising," Cady said. Vice Chair Deborah Roberts, who has presided over the public hearing throughout, participated remotely; all five members voted in favor of the continuation. Member John McCriskey opened the meeting with a remembrance of Stoughton resident Julia Isabel Kelly Coon, 64, who died February 24, noting her connection to the town through her brother James Kelly, the lead on Stoughton's VFW project.