My Turn: Support for a professional 3D representation of Lincoln’s future possibilities

By Barbara Peskin

I attended the Select Board meeting on Monday, Feb. 5 when a request for a massing study of Option C was discussed. Typically, a massing study is done for a proposed new building or project. In this case, because rezoning 70 acres and 38 properties under HCA has no specific project on the table, a massing study would have to be done for an imagined scenario of buildings and housing on all the different properties. The boards would decide on a scenario or range of scenarios for different building types and parcel groupings.

In my opinion, and the reason I signed and supported the request along with 110 others is that any 3D visualization of possible development makes me a more knowledgeable voter on March 23. I am open to voting yes or no on March 23 because I know we have until December 2024 to file our HCA compliance plan with the state.

At the Monday meeting, the Select Board chair said that the discussion was preliminary. He asked the Planning Board chair in attendance how a massing study could be used. In response, the Planning Board chair stated that whatever might happen with Option C is “wild speculation” and for that reason a massing study would not have meaning.

While I appreciate that a Planning and Select Board might have to live with “wild speculation” on five acres or five properties, it is difficult for me to understand why choosing a route of “wild speculation” on 70 acres and 38 properties in the Lincoln Station area is proper planning for a town, the people, the land, or wildlife. The town could choose less “wild” choices to comply with HCA and then plan for sustainable increased housing outside of HCA.

My ask of the Select Board now is that they have a broad discussion about this concept of “wild speculation” on 38 properties and what they think of that in terms of Lincoln’s future. As town leaders, could Planning Board and Select Board members tell us which 10 properties they think would be best/prime for development? What is their vision?

Should the Select Board move forward with a professional massing study, I hope they consider suggestions that came up at the Monday meeting. They could ask to see examples of a variety of buildings throughout the 38 properties. We could see different 3-story buildings with 10 units, 11 units and 25 units, representing the different sub-district densities. We could also see an example of some grouped properties and full buildout on those. For example, could we see what a 77 unit development on 7 acres might look like if the block at Codman Corner, Lincoln Road, and Lewis Street becomes grouped. We could see what a building on two acres with 22 units looks like. With 38 properties, we should be able to include a wide range of examples.

The results of the massing study could be provided to all residents through the town website. I hope the Select Board will continue the discussion and that a massing study or similar professional 3D representation will be made available to us ahead of the design guidelines forum on February 27.

“My Turn” is a forum for readers to offer their letters to the editor or views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.