FOXBORO - Selectmen are taking a closer look at taking ownership of the Neponset Reservoir dam after the current owner makes $625,000 in repairs to meet state requirements for dam safety.

Former Selectman Robert Hickey is pushing the deal, which would require town meeting approval.

"I think we created a wonderful solution for the town," Hickery said.

Selectmen accepted a report presented by Hickey and drafted by the start-up group called Friends of the Neponset Reservoir Association, and may vote on the issue in two weeks.

The report outlines 28 reasons for the town to take ownership of the dam. Selectman James Thrasher asked whether the current owners of the dam are committed to the repairs even if the town decides not to take ownership.

Hickey said he has not and will not ask that question of the owners, and attorney Deirdre M. Murphy, who is a director of the Neponset Reservoir Co., which owns the dam, spoke of the advantages of the proposed takeover agreement.

"So the answer to the question is no gift, no repair," Thrasher concluded, referring to NRC's wish to gift the structure to the town after it is repaired.

Sheila Warner of Ridge Road spoke of the progress that has been made in cleaning up the lake and joined many other speakers in urging town acceptance of the dam repair and takeover proposal.

Hickey said the town's maintenance costs will be little more than mowing the earthen dam twice a year.

Selectman Paul Feeney said he's heard a lot of talk lately about the liabilities the town would incur by taking ownership of the dam, even after it's repaired.

Under a draft memorandum, five parties, including NRRC, a corporation formed by the town to manage a reservoir cleanup settlement fund, would pay a portion of the costs to repair the dam.

Neponset Reservoir Co. owns certain land under the reservoir, as well both the Neponset Reservoir Dam and the Crackrock Pond Dam. The stock in NRC is owned by Hollingsworth & Vose Co. of East Walpole and Covidien of Mansfield.

The reservoir company, in a process that started in 2006, is seeking conservation commission approval for the repair work.