Gloucester Council Approves Applied Materials Height Variance, School Advocates Demand Budget Action

GLOUCESTER — May 12, 2026 — Gloucester council approves Applied Materials expansion permit as school advocates pack public comment. The Gloucester City Council voted 7-0 at its May 12 meeting to grant a special permit allowing Applied Materials Incorporated to build a three-story manufacturing and engineering addition at 35 Dory Road that will reach 50.9 feet, exceeding the business park district's 40-foot standard. Eight speakers during oral communications — led by School Committee Chair Kathy Clancy and Vice Chair Bill Melvin — urged the council to increase school funding beyond the mayor's submission, with Melvin warning that the proposed budget provides "zero extra dollars" beyond covering rising health insurance costs for a district where 24 percent of students carry documented learning disabilities. The council also accepted a $45,000 state hazardous fuels mitigation grant, approved a $300,000 supplemental appropriation from the school special education stabilization fund for unbudgeted FY2026 positions, and heard DPW Director Mike Hale project the city's next solid waste contract at approximately $5 million annually — up from roughly $2 million in 2009 — with automated cart collection and a new recycling disposal fee averaging $125 per ton adding an estimated $750,000 or more to the bill. Library Director Jenny Benedict reported the renovated Sawyer Free Library's $27.4 million construction phase came in under its $29 million authorization, with the Library Corporation on track to transfer $1.6 million annually toward the outstanding $14 million bond anticipation note.