Town Manager Weekly Update - July 10, 2025
Elaine Lazarus
Hopkinton Youth & Family Services Summer Newsletter: HYFS Summer 2025 Newsletter.pdf
Events: Below is a list of events, and more information on each follows.
July 10 - Outdoor movie on the Town Common - Moana 2
July 13 - 2025 USATF-NE Road Mile Championships at Hopkinton High School
July 13 - Farmers Market on the Town Common (every Sunday)
July 13 - Concert on the Common - Antarctica
July 16 - Questions about Hopkinton Power Choice and Your Electric Rates? - 2:30 pm at the Senior Center and 6:00 pm at the Library
July 17 - Hopkinton Fire Department Blood Drive at the Senior Center
July 19 - Trails Day Celebration, Hughes Farm Trails
July 20 - Concert on the Common - Roy Scott Big Band
July 24 - Outdoor movie on the Town Common - Inside Out 2
July 26 - Household Hazardous Waste Day at the Dept. of Public Works
July 27 - Concert on the Common - The Hopkinton Community Summer Band
August 3 - Concert on the Common - Carolyn Rae and the Rumors
August 7 - Outdoor movie on the Town Common - Mufasa: The Lion King
Hopkinton Parks & Recreation Free Summer Events
Outdoor Movies on the Town Common: An evening under the stars with family-friendly movies on the Town Common, brought to you by Hopkinton Parks & Recreation! Movies will begin at dusk, around 8:30 pm. Don’t forget your blankets, lawn chairs, and favorite snacks. Weather cancellations will be posted on the Parks & Rec. website.
July 10 Moana 2
July 24 Inside Out 2
August 7 Mufasa: The Lion King
Summer Concerts on the Common:
Bring the whole family for an afternoon of music, dancing, and fun. This is a free event open to everyone! Concerts will begin at 5:00 PM.
July 13th Antarctica
Antarctica perform 60s and 70s pop covers - "The Music Everyone Knows & Loves"
July 20th Roy Scott Big Band
Roy Scott Big Band is a 19-piece ensemble with a repertoire that includes Swing Era classics, rock, pop, "cool" jazz, funk, bebop, blues, and Latin.
July 27th The Hopkinton Community Summer Band
A summer staple for over 20 years, the Hopkinton Community Summer Band features your friends and neighbors playing a wide variety of summer band favorites. Marches, medlies, and more!
August 3rd Carolyn Rae and The Rumors
Playing Taylor Swift to Billy Idol, Elton John to Dua Lipa, Michael Jackson and more, Carolyn Rae & the Rumors brings the energy and something for everybody to have a good time!
August 10th Knock on Wood
Knock on Wood is a high-energy acoustic folk-rock duo, featuring singer-songwriter Howie Newman on guitar, lead vocals and harmonica. He is joined by one of the top fiddler players in the area.
August 17th Studio Two
Studio Two is a headlining Beatles band that pays tribute to the early Beatles years, choosing songs from the pre-Sgt. Pepper era.
August 24th Din Check
Din Check is New England’s premier Bollywood band. Din Check – or noise check – is also the phonetic sound of the “tabla,” an Indian percussion instrument. It’s a fitting name for a band that consistently brings audiences to their feet with their lively and rhythmic performances. Touching upon all genres, popular singers, and eras, the band appeals to people of all ages. Din Check's repertoire also spans multiple languages, including Hindi, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Gujarati, as well as unique fusions or "mashups" of popular American rock music and Indian music.
Pickleball Open Play: Hopkinton Parks and Recreation is pleased to announce the start of Pickleball Open Play at the courts at Fruit Street. Open play will take place Wednesday evenings from 4:00-7:00 pm on courts 1, 2, and 5. Participants are required to sign up via PlayTime Scheduler.
PlayTime Scheduler is a FREE online tool – accessible by computer or mobile device – to help players arrange local pickleball play that matches their skill level, location and schedule. Easily arrange pickleball games with other players in your area.
2025 USATF-NE Road Mile Championships
On Sunday, July 13, Hopkinton will welcome milers from New England, including Hopkinton, to the Road Mile Championships, hosted at Hopkinton High School (90 Hayden Rowe); the course is on the Loop Road. Hopkinton’s Platinum Physical Therapy is sponsoring the event, which will take place from 9:00 am to noon.
There will be five championship races scheduled - Open Women, Open Men, Women 40+, Men 40-59, Men 60+. There will also be community All-Comers Mile and Youth mile races. Additional information is here: 2025 USATF-NE Road Mile Championships | USA Track & Field New England
Hopkinton Fire Department Blood Drive - July 17
An important reminder about the upcoming Hopkinton Fire Department Blood Drive, hosted by the Hopkinton Senior Center. This event comes at a critical time, as the American Red Cross has issued an emergency call for blood and platelet donations to address an extremely low summer blood supply.
Please see the information below, and scan the QR code to sign up.
Trails Day Celebration - July 19
The Hopkinton Trails Club is marking its 20th anniversary this year with a Trails Day Celebration on Saturday, July 19 at the Hughes Farm property (192 Hayden Rowe), from 10AM to 1PM. There will be guided trail & nature walks, a scavenger hunt, trail information & advice, and more. As a group or individual with an interest in the trails, the Trails Club invites you to join them in celebrating Hopkinton’s trails and precious open spaces.
The Hughes Farm property is owned by the Town of Hopkinton and is preserved in perpetuity. It was expanded in 2024 with the Town’s purchase of the adjacent Colella property. The property includes a portion of the old railroad bed, and a stream that is the headwaters of the Charles River. The acquisition of both properties were funded by the Town with Community Preservation Act funds, which were approved by Town Meeting.
Hopkinton Farmers Market - Every Sunday from Noon to 4 p.m on the Hopkinton Town Common. Check out the weekly schedule of vendors on their website: Hopkinton Farmers Market
Hopkinton Power Choice And Your Electric Service
In a December update, I noted that the Town had filed a request with the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) for approval of a municipal aggregation plan pursuant to G.L. c. 164, § 134, which authorizes a municipality to procure electric supply on behalf of consumers within its borders through a municipal aggregation program. The Town had retained MassPowerChoice to serve as its consultant in this proceeding and to assist in the implementation of the Program, and a public hearing on the program was held in January.
Since then, the program was approved by the DPU, and the Town undertook the required procurement process. The Town has engaged Direct Energy to provide 24 months of stable electricity supply prices as well as cleaner electricity for program participants. All residents should have received a mailing within the last few weeks with information about Hopkinton Power Choice, which will be launched in September. We’ve received several calls asking if the mailing residents received from the Town of Hopkinton, with the Town seal, ℅ Direct Energy, from a non-Hopkinton address is really from the Town, and it is. The envelope also has a time-sensitive notice. Your vigilance and your questions are appreciated! We’re happy to continue fielding these and other calls regarding this program, so please visit, call or email with questions. To reach the Town’s consultant customer support, please call 1-800-538-8435.
There are two public information sessions scheduled where you can learn more about the program, ask questions, and get answers:
Wednesday July 16, 2025
2:30 pm at the Hopkinton Senior Center, 28 Mayhew St. AND
6:00 pm at the Hopkinton Public Library, 13 Main St.
The program details are available at this website, HopkintonPowerChoice.com, and more detailed information about the program is below.
Hopkinton Power Choice changes the price used to calculate the supply charge on Eversource’s electric bills. Participants will automatically receive an additional 15% of their electricity from clean, renewable sources for 14.590 ¢/kWh, which is a savings compared with Eversource’s residential price of 14.884 ¢/kWh that takes effect on August 1. Eversource remains responsible for delivering electricity to Hopkinton without interruption, addressing power outages, and handling all electricity billing. Hopkinton Power Choice impacts only Eversource’s electricity supply charge. Eversource’s delivery charges will not be impacted.
Two additional program options will be available by request. Participants can choose to receive electricity that is 100% from renewable sources for 16.840 ¢/kWh or to receive just the minimum amount from renewable sources required by law for 13.970 ¢/kWh.
All Hopkinton Power Choice prices are fixed and will not change from September 2025 until September 2027. In contrast, Eversource’s price will be in effect from August 1, 2025, through January 31, 2026, and future prices are not known.
Like all similar programs across the state and in accordance with state law, Hopkinton Power Choice will use an automatic enrollment model. Electricity accounts with Eversource’s Basic Service, meaning accounts that do not have a private electricity supply contract, will be eligible for automatic enrollment in Hopkinton Power Choice in September and will see the program price on their October Eversource bill.
Account holders eligible for automatic enrollment received a notification by mail but can choose to opt out if they do not wish to participate. There is no fee or penalty to opt out. Electricity accounts with a private electricity supply contract will not be eligible for automatic enrollment, but they can be enrolled in Hopkinton Power Choice by request.
Electricity customers who receive solar credits and/or solar incentive payments on their bill will continue to receive those credits or payments with no change. Electricity customers who receive fuel assistance or a low-income discount from Eversource will continue to receive that benefit with no change.
Participation in Hopkinton Power Choice is not required. Those with accounts eligible for automatic enrollment can choose to opt out before being automatically enrolled if they do not wish to participate. Any customer who does participate in Hopkinton Power Choice has the freedom to opt out at any time in the future with no fee or penalty.
Household Hazardous Waste Day - July 26
From 8:00 am to 1:00 pm at the Hopkinton Dept. of Public Works, 83 Wood St.
For more information and a list of products that will accepted and not accepted, check out the DPW website here: Household Hazardous Waste
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