The Board of Selectmen is asking for help from Westford residents. A  Special Town Meeting  will be held on Thursday, July 30, 7:30 pm, in the Abbot School gymnasium. This Special Town Meeting could save the town hundreds of thousands of dollars, but only if 200 registered voters attend to make a quorum.   The sole purpose of this Special Town Meeting is to discuss and vote on funding for the cleanup of perchlorate, which has contaminated our ground water and is spreading. For the safety of our citizens, and as mandated by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, Westford must take action to correct the problem. If we act before the end of July, we can significantly reduce the cost to Westford.   Part of the recommended remediation is to develop a well on the recently acquired Stepinski property and to construct a resin-based perchlorate treatment facility at a cost of up to approximately $2.1 million. We have recently learned that if Westford commits to funding this project by the end of July, the town will be eligible for federal stimulus funds and state revolving fund loans. These funding sources could potentially pay for up to 30% of the project and finance the remainder at 1% interest. Depending on the final cost of the project and amount of the stimulus funds received, the savings to Westford taxpayers could range from several hundred thousand dollars to a million dollars or more.   Westford is required by the state to clean up the perchlorate. With a favorable vote at the Special Town Meeting, we can take advantage of this small window of opportunity in which state and federal funding is available to help reduce the cost to the town.   We realize nobody wants to spend a July evening sitting in a town meeting. This, however, is a unique situation. If we all come together as a community, we can make a difference for Westford’s financial future. Please attend the Special Town Meeting on Thursday, July 30, at 7:30 pm in the Abbot School gymnasium. And please bring a friend!   Respectfully submitted,   Westford Board of Selectmen   Bob Jefferies Jim Sullivan Val Wormell Nancy Rosinski Kelly Ross