government

(Editor’s note: this story was updated in Dcember 2025.)

Thanks to passage of a state law late last year, governmental organizations and others may now publish legal notices in the Lincoln Squirrel without also having to pay for publication in a print newspaper. 

State law (MGL Part 1, Title 1, Chapter 4, Sec. 13) requires that certain legal notices must be published in a print newspaper, including municipal notices of upcoming public hearings, requests for bids, etc., as well as property foreclosures, notices informing creditors of dissolving corporations, etc. This closes off an important source of potential revenue for digital-only news sites like the Lincoln Squirrel and does a disservice to residents who no longer get their information from hollowed-out legacy news sources.

However, Lincoln is now exempt from the print requirement. Go to the Legal Notices tab at the top of every Squirrel web page to see the notices for the last 12 months. Note that this part of the website is always available to nonsubscribers as well as subscribers.

This all started with a citizen’s petition that was circulated by the Lincoln Squirrel and approved by residents at Town Meeting in March 2024. The Select Board subsequently sent a home rule petition to the state legislature, which approved House bill H.4664 (sponsored by Assistant House Minority Leader Alice Peisch and Carmine Gentile, and Assistant Senate Majority Leader Mike Barrett of Lexington) late last year. It was signed by Gov. Healey in January 2025 — an unexpectedly swift process. In the same session, similar bills for Arlington, Bedford, and Franklin were approved (learn more here). Many thanks to our state legislators, town officials and residents for their support!

Meanwhile, the Squirrel and other members of the Eastern Mass. News Alliance are still pushing for a statewide law change so other towns don’t have to go through the same home-rule petition process. It’s not easy because the newspaper industry is understandably fighting to preserve one of their last steady sources of revenue, but it’s probably only a matter of time in a rapidly evolving media environment.

Lincoln Historic District Commission 

The Historic District Commission will hold a virtual online public hearing at 7:30pm on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, to consider the application of 68 Conant Rd., M/P 168-1-0, to replace several windows and add a new one. Anyone wishing to be heard on this matter should be present at the designated time and place. 

 

Six organizations offered updates and a look ahead at the State of the Town meeting on December 7. There are links to each group’s presentation on the SOTT web page. Some highlights discussed on Saturday:

Finance Committee

“Lincoln’s financials remain incredibly strong,” said FinCom chair Paul Blanchfield. His presentation included a summary of revenue and expenses in the current fiscal year, a budget process timetable for fiscal 2026, tax comparisons to other area towns, and some possible future capital projects. The closest in expected timeframe is roadway improvements, which will be needed in the next 3–5 years for approximately $15 million, he said. 

Community center

The detailed design for the building is now being produced and the $24.02 million project is expected to break ground in July 2025, with completion by late fall 2026, said Community Center Building Committee co-chair Sarah Chester. The town has already made a $6.7 million “down payment” from free cash, the stabilization fund, and donations; the remaining $15.8 million will be bonded next fall. The borrowing amount may be slightly less than originally expected because “interest rates are moving in our favor — we’re in a much better position than we expected to be,” Blanchfield said.

Initial plans were based on a 4.5% projected interest rate, but the current rate is about 3.8%, so officials are now factoring a rate of 4.25% into the borrowing estimate. As a result, the FinCom hopes to offset the previously expected tax increase associated with the project for the next fiscal year. The town has $40 million of debt capacity and will have $23 million remaining after the bonding, Blanchfield said.

Ned Collier of ICON Architects showed the latest renderings of what the inside and outside of the building will look. 

Planning Board

In March 2025, residents will be asked to vote on two zoning updates, both of which are required in order to have the town bylaw reflect associated changes in state or federal law. One of those changes was an update to FEMA’s flood plain maps, which means Lincoln has to update wording in the flood plain overlay district section of the zoning bylaw in order to have residents qualify for flood insurance.

At the state level, the legislature recently made changes to its accessory dwelling unit rules. These changes apply to ADUs of up to 900 square feet, so for units up to that size, the town may not require more than one parking spot, may not require any parking if the unit is within half a mile of the train station, and ma not require owner occupancy of the overall structure.

Lincoln allows ADUs of up to 1,200 square feet with certain restrictions, but the state law applies only to ADUs of up to 900 square feet, so local rules for units of 900–1,200 square feet will not change, said Planning Board Chair Margaret Olson. Property owners also won’t require a special permit for ADUs that are part of an existing dwelling as opposed to a separate building (see page 4 of Olson’s presentation).

She also outlined the various updates to ADU rules in recent years and noted that since 2021, there have been an average of 2.75 ADUs built annually in town.

Dark Skies

A subcommittee of the Planning Board is working on updates to the rules around outdoor lighting. Currently, regulations are found only in the zoning bylaw, which applies only to new construction, so the group is planning to propose changes to the general bylaw as well, which would affect existing outdoor lighting. The goal is to have limits on the brightness, illumination direction and color temperature of outside lights to minimize disruption for animals and insects, and to encourage timers and motion activators on lights that stay on all night.

IDEA

The Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Antiracism Committee has done an equity audit and a gap analysis of town policies as part of its mission to foster racial, age ethnic and economic diversity in Lincoln, said IDEA Committee Chair Rob Stringer. The resulting action plan calls for collaboration with boards and committees in applying DEI tools in recruiting, meeting management, and policy making.

Also on tap: A Newcomers/Get to Know Lincoln event on January 26, 2025 and more future occasions “to support our mission and to ensure residents see themselves in town events,” Stringer said.

Lincoln250

The 250th anniversary of the Battle of Lexington and Concord will be observed in an array of events in those towns as well as Lincoln and Arlington. Here in Lincoln, the kickoff starts on January 30 with a library-sponsored webinar on “Causes of the American Revolution.” February will see a dance party in the style of 1775 and a virtual talk by Lincoln historian Don Hafner on “Entangled Lives, Black and White, Enslaved and Free, in 18th-century Lincoln.”

 

The bulk of the action takes place in April; on Saturday, April 19, there could well be 150,000 people in Lexington, Lincoln and Concord, said Police Chief Sean Kennedy. As a result, Route 2A and Hanscom Drive will be closed to all vehicles that day (causing a feigned groan of dismay from the audience at the prospect of the planned transfer station closure) so Route 2A can be used as a transportation corridor for buses, event staff, and visiting dignitaries.

In addition, numerous other roads in the area of Minute Man National Historic Park will be closed to all but residents of those roads, who will be issued vehicle passes in advance — see the Lincoln250 presentation starting on page 6.

 

Most of the events within Lincoln will take place from April 12–27 but there will also be a townwide Lincoln250 Fair and Feast on June 14 in Pierce Park. For more information on the months-long observances see the Lincoln25 Planning Committee web page.

The process of examining Lincoln’s open Town Meeting — “democracy in its purest form,” as Moderator Sarah Cannon Holden said — kicked off on September 16 with two sessions where dozens of residents offered initial feedback.

Anyone who wasn’t able to attend may offer their feedback on this Padlet page, which asks what currently works well about Town Meeting, what could be improved, and topics that the Town Meeting Study Committee (TMSC) should explore. Links to the slide deck and a recording of the morning Zoom sessions as well as the Padlet link can be found on the TMSC web page. The Padlet page — which already includes transcribed comments from both of this week’s sessions as well as those submitted to the Select Board since last spring — will stay open for comments and questions until Friday, Sept. 20.

Holden outlined some basic procedures as well as changes in recent years that have made Town Meeting more efficient, such as putting more warrant articles onto the consent calendar for a single vote, and rolling multiple budget presentations from each major cost center into a single presentation by the Finance Committee.

Town counsel Joel Bard addressed the legal aspects of some ideas that have already been floated since last spring’s controversial Annual Town Meeting:

1. A split-session Town Meeting where issues would be debated on the usual Saturday and then all votes would take place at another gathering several days later — state law doesn’t prohibit this, but Lincoln’s bylaw would have to be amended, Bard said. Voting would be handled the same way as it now is: in person, either by voice vote or clickers. Although money has been approved to buy clickers, exactly how they will be used (for example, whether or not votes will be anonymous) is yet to be determined. Also, it’s up to the moderator how each article’s vote will be conducted; “it’s much faster to have yeas and nays when the outcome is clear” for relatively noncontroversial issues, he said.

2. Voting at the ballot box rather than in person — this isn’t possible without a change in state law, Bard said: “Then it becomes an election that’s highly regulated, as well as extremely  inefficient and time-consuming.”

3. Remote participation — This, too, would require a change in state law. Since the pandemic, the state has allowed remote attendance and discussion at meetings of boards and commissions, but not Town Meeting. It’s possible to have some attendees in a different collective location, such as the gym or some other overflow location, “but not remotely dialing in from home,” Bard said. And if there’s an insoluble technical breakdown preventing those in a secondary location from hearing and participating, the entire Town Meeting must be adjourned. “That’s a serious consideration,” he noted.

The Select Board will vote to confirm the TMSC’s charge at its September 30 meeting and begin accepting applications to serve on the committee in the first half October (an application form will be posted on the TMSC web page). Candidate interviews and appointments will happen late in October and meetings will begin in early November. A final report and recommendations are expected in fall 2025.

Town officials and residents will begin public discussions about how Town Meeting is conducted and how might be improved at a two-session kick-off forum on Monday, Sept. 16 with a virtual morning session at 8 a.m. and an in-person evening session at 7 p.m. in the Lincoln School’s Learning Commons.

The call to reexamine the town’s collective decision-making process arose after the March 2024 Town Meeting where an unexpected amendment to the proposed Housing Choice Act was made on the floor. Controversy swirled over who was allowed to address the audience, and when and where they could speak. There have also been voting confusion and delays at recent Town Meetings.

At the September forum, residents will be invited to share thoughts about the processes leading up to Town Meeting and the protocols of the meeting itself. “Feedback from these sessions will help us identify what is working well, what needs improvement, and the key issues that our soon-to-be appointed Town Meeting Study Committee (TMSC) should consider,” Select Board and Town Moderator Sarah Cannon Holden wrote in a postcard mailed to Lincoln households. “This work will be conducted with respect for the tradition and norms that have served Lincoln well since the first Town Meeting in April 1754, a commitment to equity, and with recognition that Town Meeting should continue to adapt to the needs and desires of Lincoln’s current residents.”

The town has launched a TMSC web page that thus far includes links to existing town rules, materials from the Massachusetts Moderator’s Association, studies by other towns, and a 2009 report in Lincoln town governance.

Those unable to attend either session on September 16 may email comments to TMSC@lincolntown.org.

Editor’s note: The Lincoln Squirrel initially decided not to cover this issue so as not to publicize what I feel are highly misguided and hurtful views. I decided to write this story after the matter came up at a fourth meeting; I felt that not doing so would amount to sweeping an uncomfortable ongoing issue under the rug. We ignore public statements of this type — especially when they consist of blatant hatred and start to be heard from not just individuals but a statewide political party, as recently happened in Colorado — at our peril. 

The LGBTQIA+ community is celebrating Pride Month in June with parades, flags, and in some places (including Lincoln), proclamations of support. But not everyone has been in a celebratory mood — as evidenced when two Lincolnites spoke out in person against transgenderism at public meetings and a third meeting was profanely “Zoom-bombed.”

It all began in the weeks before the Select Board planned to issue its now-annual proclamation that June is Pride Month in Lincoln (see an identical version of the document from 2022 here). Knowing that this was happening in a few weeks, resident Charlotte Trim said at the board’s April 16 meeting that “this Pride proclamation seems to sort of normalize the transgender movement” and asserted that leaked emails from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health revealed that she called “horrifying” findings. Among her claims: that the suicide rate for postoperative transgender people is much higher than that for the rest of the population, and that hormonal therapies for transgender patients cause cancer or sterilization.

“What is being promoted to children in this town that you can choose your gender the way you can choose your career,” Trim said, adding that children being medically treated for gender dysphoria “are going to be sent on a eugenics program” and that “what you are putting forth here is actually a Satanic belief system.” She then asked the board to withdraw its upcoming Pride proclamation. 

Resident David Stubblebine also spoke in support of Trim’s sentiments. “The zeitgeist of the age is to embrace pride, embrace LGBT, embrace transgenderism,” he said. “Young children parading around with rainbow flags — not OK, in my opinion… and the transgenderism thing is 10 times worse… it’s promoting in our town a culture of death, in my opinion.”

Chris Eliot, who also happened to be attending the April 16 meeting via Zoom, took issue with those statements. “I feel that trying to equate the LGBT community and the LGBT movement to a Satanic cult was personally offensive,” he said. Trim tried to respond but was prevented from speaking further by the board.

Trim doubled down at the board’s next meeting on April 30. The Bill of Rights says Americans are “protected from having strange religions forced upon us, which is how it feels… what we seem to be doing is worshiping a pagan god,” she said. She claimed that other parents she had spoken to in town “are not very happy, but they don’t want to speak out because we all know if you speak out, you get punished.”

Reached by the Lincoln Squirrel on April 17, Trim said that she had reached out to Stubblebine and other residents before the April 16 meeting. “I asked them, “are you aware of the reality of what’s actually going down? …It makes the medical experiments that the Japanese did to the Chinese look mild.”

But worse was yet to come. At the Select Board’s May 6 meeting, shortly after a discussion of a planned May 29 Lincoln School procession and gathering to mark the start of Pride Month, someone with a Zoom screen identity of Wyatt Prower (perhaps a variant of “white power”) broke into the meeting with racist and anti-gay slurs. A second voice then displayed an antisemitic image and another of feces superimposed on the gay pride flag.  

“This is a perfect illustration of why we’re doing what we’re doing,” Town Administrator Tm Higgins said just before the Zoom broadcast was briefly suspended.

This is the second time a Lincoln meeting has been Zoom-bombed. In April 2021, someone broke into an online meeting of the Council on Aging board of directors, leaving members dumbstruck even as one of them — Hope White, who is Black — watched and listened in pain.

After the two April meetings, Select Board Chair Kim Bodnar declined further comment, saying in an email, “Lincoln’s Pride Proclamation aims to provide support for our residents and ensures everyone feels valued and full members of our community.”

Finally, at the board’s June 3 meeting, resident Michelle Barnes read a statement decrying the earlier anti-trans comments as “dehumanizing name-calling.” “This may encourage all of us to choose and ask others to choose to fill our public square not with hate speech, disrespect and bullying but instead to bring our best selves to these discussions,” she said. “If we fill our public square with humility, empathy, the benefit of the doubt, and respect for each other’s human dignity, we will create a much more favorable condition for cooperation and inclusion, especially in the context of dissenting views, creating more favorable conditions for them to be genuinely and thoughtfully considered.

“Although we have First Amendment rights to bring hate speech and bullying to our public square, and bullying is an effective strategy for giving more weight to one person’s or one group’s vote, it doesn’t mean it is right to exercise these rights, because the cost of exercising them in these ways is not only the erosion of our ability to cooperatively govern. The cost is also a fracturing of our shared humanity and community,” Barnes concluded.

The Select Board outlined a plan for the Town Meeting Study Committee this week, starting with a September kickoff meeting.

The board expects to create a website over the summer with background material about local and state laws governing Town Meeting, information from the Massachusetts Moderators Association, and more. They will draft a charge and seek a broad range of potential members in the fall, though a number of people have already volunteered, according to Select Board member Jim Hutchinson. 

The study committee will do an initial study and gather feedback about the group’s initial ideas in December at the State of the Town Meeting, where voting clickers may be tried for the first time in one or more nonbinding votes on questions to be determined. Another presentation will take place at Annual Town Meeting in March 2025, with a final report and recommendations to the Select Board in November 2025.

Earlier, officials discussed having a spring forum headed by Town Moderator Sarah CannonHolden after the March 2024 Town Meeting where an unexpected amendment to the proposed Housing Choice Act was made on the floor. Controversy swirled during and after that day as residents argued over who was allowed to speak when and from where.

The timetable is longer than some had hoped, “but it would be a mistake for us to try to minimize this or pass it off as a forum or a single meeting kind of topic,” Hutchinson said at the board’s April 29 meeting. 

“I don’t want to have a meeting where we do all the talking,” Holden said. “From my perspective, what is it that the public wants? I want to hear from them.”

“I also have to insist that this committee does polling of as broad a spectrum of the population as possible,” perhaps including a townwide mail-in poll, Hutchinson said. “I don’t like the idea of the 20 or 50 or 100 people who show up at a forum to set the ideas that get pursued.”

Meanwhile, the Planning Board is also working on a set of policies and procedures for its meetings, particularly with regard to public comment. They expect to vote on their most recent draft at their meeting on May 14.

An earlier prohibition on town officials participating in LincolnTalk for fear of open Meeting Law violations has been loosened and clarified by Town Counsel Joel Bard.

Planning Board members were advised at their April 16 meeting that they were no longer allowed to post emails to LincolnTalk or even subscribe to the listserv. Director of Planning and Land Use Paula Vaughn-MacKenzie said this was the advice of Town Counsel Joel Bard and accompanied a recent public records request by resident Barbara Peskin for emails and other communications relating to the March 23 Town Meeting.

“The one-sentence summary is that town officials may participate and post on social media, but they must avoid any discussions or ‘deliberations’ with fellow board members and should limit their posts to simple factual points,” Town Administrator Tim Higgins told the Select Board on April 29.

Board and committee members may post information about meeting schedules and other basic administrative matters on LincolnTalk as well as basic factual information, including offering corrections to misstatements, Higgins wrote in a memo to the Select Board, which makes reference to the Attorney General’s Office FAQs on the Open Meeting Law. However, they may not post a response to the posting of another member, “as doing so risks becoming a deliberation outside the confines of a properly convened public meeting,” and they also may not use LincolnTalk to “engage in debate with fellow board members or the public.”

“‘Deliberation’ is defined broadly,” Higgins said at the meeting. “If we start to respond to one another’s posts or even respond to a post by a resident other than to clarify basic factual information, it’s a slippery slope, and [Bard] has seen a number of clients slide down that slope.”

At the heart of the matter is that LincolnTalk should not be viewed by residents as a primary information source about town government. “Lincoln Talk has a limited place among the town’s communication and outreach strategies. It is not the primary vehicle through which the town communicates with its residents. Residents who post questions or concerns to LincolnTalk should not expect that a town official will be responding,” Higgins’s memo notes.

Instead, residents who have questions should contact the relevant department listed on the town website (hover your mouse over the Government link at the top of the page). Those who aren’t sure where to start may contact the Town Administrator’s Office.

“My takeaway is that there’s frustration on this side of the table that more folks don’t reach out directly to us,” Higgins said. “LincolnTalk is valuable in its own way but it’s not an official communications vehicle for the town.” There is no staff member whose job includes monitoring LincolnTalk, “and none of us is authorized to respond on behalf of the town in an official way” on that platform.