My Turn: Residents write in support of Olson for reelection

We, the undersigned, strongly support Margaret Olson for Planning Board. For the past ten years, Margaret has been both a dedicated leader and member of the board. highly hones management skills and her creative mind, Margaret has helped make decisions that serve to protect Lincoln’s character — open space and our landscapes — while promoting necessary policies for our present and future needs.

Effective participation as a member of the planning board requires a person who understands the complexities of zoning and is at home with site plans, as well as understanding Lincoln’s values, its past decisions, and its uniqueness. Members of the planning board must have the ability to create solutions to accommodate both our present and future needs. Members need to be committed to and comfortable with the public process.

Margaret has all those characteristics. She has worked on the Planning Board to:

• Institute Lincoln’s first Dark Sky lighting regulations
• Streamline the Site plan review process. This has resulted in benefits for both residents and the planning board, saving time for all
• Increase multi-generational housing by incrementally loosening the Accessory Apartment zoning requirements
• Engage cooperatively with a variety of boards and stakeholders to pass the Housing Choice Act that allows the town to qualify for specific grants—resulting in Lincoln already receiving $430,000 for water main replacement
• Improve safety for all forms of transportation by serving on the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, the Roadside and Traffic Committee and the Transportation Coalition.

Margaret believes in an open and collaborative approach to solving problems. She knows from observation that over-regulation costs the town money and increases a homeowner’s individual costs to get through permitting with no benefit to either the town or their neighborhood. Planning Board reviews should focus on the critical issues in a manner that is thorough, fair, consistent and predictable. 

Margaret’s ten years on the Planning Board coupled with her tenure on Lincoln’s Board of Appeals, her years on planning boards in other towns as well as her professional background have and will serve Lincoln well.  

In addition, Margaret has honed skills central to the management of public processes that have benefited the planning board. She developed these skills when she co-founded two startups, Constant Contact (IPO) and Plum (purchased by Nokia), where she was responsible for all personally identifiable information for a worldwide service, and she has served as chief technology officer at several companies. Margaret’s public process management skills — important for Planning Board public processes — were developed as chair of several technology standards committees.

We believe that Lincoln needs Margaret on the Planning Board for her technical skill, her management style, her deep understanding of Lincoln and its unique qualities and her commitment to consistent, fair, and predictable public process. We hope that you will join us and vote for Margaret Olson for Planning Board. The election is March 31 with early voting beginning on March 22.

“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.