government

Letter to the editor: approve zoning amendments at Town Meeting

March 24, 2015

Editor’s note: Town Meeting Warrant Articles 37 and 38 ask Lincoln voters if they will amend the town’s zoning by-law to (1) permit a greater variety of commercial uses in the Lewis Street district, and (2) relax the parking requirements for businesses. See the complete warrant for details.

To the editor:

I am writing as a former member of the Board of Selectman who was liaison to the Planning Board for 12 years. I worked closely with the board on many critical development challenges that threatened our rural, small-town character in our residential neighborhoods and our fragile retail district.

From that perspective, I am writing to urge support for Articles 37 and 38 at Town Meeting, and to urge all to better understand the work of our Planning Board in implementing the Comprehensive Long Range Plan (CLRP) and caring for neighborhood character through site plan review.

The Planning Board takes it direction from the values and concerns that the town articulates through Town Meeting actions, the CLRP, planning forums, and the numerous comments from applicants and residents that are received at Planning Board meetings every year.

As to proactive work in planning and implementation of aspects of the CLRP, Articles 37 and 38 will do just that. Many in town believe that we must take actions to preserve and promote a vital retail district in the Lincoln Station area. The Planning Board conducted a study as to how best advance this objective. In addition, they held meetings with local business owners to gather their ideas about promoting the district. A business district is made up of private property owners who cannot be compelled to make investments. But they can be encouraged and welcomed. That is what Articles 37 and 38 are designed to do.

Other objectives identified in the CLRP are dependent upon voluntary actions of other boards and committees, and cannot be mandated or regulated by the Planning Board.

Several letters to the editor have taken issue with the work of the Planning Board, specifically regarding site plan review.

Site plan review is not unique to Lincoln. It is used across the Commonwealth to preserve community character.

While property owners have rights, those who live in the neighborhood also may have legitimate concerns that deserve consideration. It is the Planning Board that is charged by the town, through the town’s zoning bylaws, to protect neighborhoods. It is a balancing act that I have observed has been taken very seriously and very sensitively by the Planning Board.

The Planning Board works hard to ensure that all new development receives full and fair vetting by the town, and by the neighborhoods that will experience the most immediate impact. When the Planning Board reviews a large project, they are acting in all our interest to ensure we all have a voice in shaping and managing change and the character of our community for years to come.

Sincerely,

Sara Mattes
71 Conant Rd.

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

Correction and clarification

March 24, 2015

Correction

A March 23 letter to the editor headlined “Letter to the editor: vote ‘yes’ on Articles 30 and 31” carried the wrong signature. That letter was written by Douglas Adams, not Steven Perlmutter. The Squirrel had previously published a letter from Perlmutter on March 17 headlined “Letter to the editor: ‘focus like a laser’ on getting state funding for school.” The March 23 letter has been amended online to reflect this correction.

Clarification

In the March 20 Lincoln Squirrel story about the school building warrant articles to be voted on at Town Meeting, there was a sentence that stated in part: “If the town were to borrow $30 million and also approve the campus master plan expenditure, there would be an increase in median tax bills of 3.9 percent.” That percentage refers only to the tax increase for fiscal 2016 including the effect of the school feasibility studies, not the year-over-year tax growth with $30 million of borrowing. A decision to borrow and how much to borrow by the town would come after a feasibility study.

Letter to the editor: vote on Monday for Marshall and Quirk

March 23, 2015

To the editor:

As someone who served seven years as a member of the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School School Committee, I am writing in support of Nancy Marshall’s candidacy for reelection.

Nancy was elected to the committee at a very difficult time when economic circumstances led to reductions in funding and the political climate in Sudbury had substantially deteriorated. Nancy led the effort to successfully stabilize the financial situation and to preserve both the high educational standards that the school has achieved over the years and, perhaps more importantly, the culture of close student-teacher relationships that so nurtured my two children during their tenure at the school (if I can remember that accurately).

I would also like to strongly support the candidacy of incumbent member Gerald Quirk, whose work on the committee has been exemplary. There have been times that Lincoln voters have been encouraged to bullet-vote for the Lincoln resident candidate to preserve Lincoln’s seat by overcoming the disparity in numbers which favors Sudbury candidates. This is not such an election. In my opinion, based on my experience in serving on the committee, the other Sudbury candidate, Robert Stein, is one of the main instigators of the incivility that has characterized Sudbury politics for some time and has led to an effort by the Sudbury selectmen to formally address the deteriorated climate. A vote for Marshall and Quirk will send a strong message that Lincoln values the high school and values the efforts of its teachers, staff and volunteer political representatives.

Remember, the election is on Monday, March 30—not on Tuesday, as we are all used to Tuesday elections.

Sincerely,

Eric Harris
138 Bedford Rd.

Letter to the editor: agrees with earlier leaf-blower letter on “shared commons”

March 23, 2015

To the editor:

In a letter posted March 13, David O’Neil recognized the efforts of the Leaf Blower Study Committee to reverse our ever-heavier reliance upon leaf blowers in prettying our patches, public and private, big and little. O’Neil connected the unconstrained use of leaf blowers to the problem of “the commons” to which Garrett Hardin drew wide attention almost 50 years ago, in the springtime of the American environmental movement. O’Neil closed his letter by urging us all to acknowledge “that our shared commons are more valuable to our well-being, and to our survival, than anything that we may own as individuals.”

Letter to the editor: vote for state-assisted school building project

March 23, 2015

Editor’s note: Town Meeting Warrant Articles 30 and 31 are explained in this letter to the editor by School Committee chair Jennifer Glass.

To the editor:

I am concerned that many residents of Lincoln are unaware that the vote to determine how Lincoln will address the needs of its school building will take place on March 28. If those of us who believe it important to do more for our school building than just fix the most urgently needed repairs don’t show up at Town Meeting and vote “yes” on Articles 30 and 31, those improvements won’t happen.

Letter to the editor: vote “yes” on Articles 30 and 31

March 23, 2015

Editor’s note: This letter has been amended after publication to reflect a correction in the writer’s name. Town Meeting Warrant Articles 30 and 31 are explained in this earlier letter to the editor by School Committee chair Jennifer Glass.

To the editor:

At this Town Meeting, Lincoln’s citizens are challenged to join in constructing a renovated school building so it may engage new educational initiatives. Broad support will strengthen us in many ways, so for us all, an Alpine winter may be displaced by spring action.

I write to engage your collective support so that this spring we will be well served to support the school committee motions to (1) Spend more than $30 million on a school renovation (not repair), and to also (2) to seek to be accepted again by the MSBA [Massachusetts School Building Authority] to seek state funding support for Lincoln’s school renovation.

Letter to the editor: Taylor asks for your vote

March 23, 2015

Editor’s note: The salutation in Taylor’s letter was originally “Fellow Lincoln residents.” He is running against incumbent Robert Domnitz.

To the editor:

I ask your support as I run for the Planning Board. I am challenging an incumbent, so it will be an uphill battle, but it is time for a change in the orientation of the board. Here’s why.

Lincoln has preserved its character by anticipating and responding proactively to challenges. When Rte. 128 was built, Lincoln rezoned creatively to shape development, and when Chapter 40B was enacted, we developed affordable housing on our own terms rather than allowing developers to override our zoning. We face similar challenges now in serving the needs of our schools, our seniors and in keeping our commercial center vital. Weighing and helping to coordinate responses to such concerns should be the Board’s role.

Right now the board spends the vast majority of its time considering site plans or minor changes sought by Lincoln landowners. We must focus more time and attention on real planning matters such as implementation of the Comprehensive Long Range Plan adopted with widespread public participation in 2009, and to developing consensus around a strategy for the Lincoln Station (Mall) area, a critical priority for the town.

Furthermore, many people with whom I have talked believe the permitting process could be much more efficient and user-friendly. Most applicants before the board are residents seeking reasonable changes to their properties. The objective should be to help achieve their goals within Lincoln’s bylaws as efficiently as possible. But applicants often find the permitting path unclear and directions from the staff and board unhelpful and inconsistent. Numerous appearances before the board may be required to gain approval. Better coordination among the permitting boards and leveraging the staff to resolve issues in advance of hearings are much needed improvements.

I believe I can address these issues. I have a useful skill set with degrees in law and management and a record of getting things done in Lincoln. During my tenure on the Finance Committee we computerized the town’s accounting system and integrated it with the schools. On the Housing Commission and Housing Trust I helped add 50 affordable housing units. As a selectman, I played key roles in the development of The Groves (now The Commons), in the protection of land for open space and in capital planning.

I would appreciate your vote on March 30.

Gary Taylor
2 Beaver Pond Road

School warrant articles discussed at multiboard meeting

March 20, 2015

By Alice Waugh

In the last public information session about the Lincoln School before Town Meeting, officials from severals board and commissions discussed the three different warrant articles that will be presented for a Town Meeting vote on March 28 and at the ballot box on March 30

School Committee chair Jennifer Glass walked everyone through the warrant articles, which she outlined in detail in this letter to the editor in the Lincoln Squirrel. Since the town will almost certainly have to borrow money to finance repairs or renovations, Finance Commission chair Peyton Marshall also commented on the tax and bond-rating implications of various levels of borrowing.

Town Meeting notes

March 19, 2015

Lincoln’s Annual Town Meeting will take place on Saturday, March 28 starting at 9:30 a.m.in the Brooks Auditorium. Click here for more information about Town Meeting or call the Board of Selectmen’s office at 781-259-2601.

Shuttle service offered

Due to the expected turnout for Town Meeting and the limited parking spaces available at the school complex, the town is asking residents to carpool. Also, the town is offering a shuttle service from the Lincoln commuter lot (non-resident paved lot) to the school complex from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. The shuttle will run continuously throughout Town Meeting.

Overflow seating in Reed Gym

In the event that attendance at Town Meeting exceeds the capacity of the Brooks auditorium, overflow seating will be available in the Reed Gym, with audio feeds and other accommodations to allow full participation.

Babysitting available during Town Meeting

Lincoln’s 8th-grade Girl Scouts are offering babysitting in Hartwell Pod B during the March 28 Town Meeting from 12:45-5 p.m. These hours were chosen to coincide with discussion of the school building and community center issues in which many young families have expressed interest. The Girl Scouts are Red Cross trained in babysitting, and adults will also be on duty to help supervise. The children will be located in two rooms, one for the preschoolers and another for elementary school children.

Advance registration is required; the deadline for signup is Monday, March 23. Please email Linda Hammett Ory at LHamme@aol.com and let her know how many children you’ll be bringing, their names and ages, and what hours they need supervision. Babysitting is offered at no charge, but donations are encouraged to help support the 8th-grade Cadettes’ service projects. They have been working all year with homeless children at a Waltham family homeless shelter, and are traveling to Puerto Rico in June, where they will work at the Ronald MacDonald House.

Workshop on We the People Act this Saturday

March 18, 2015

Greater Boston Move To Amend is sponsoring a workshop in Lincoln, “Fixing Our Broken Democracy, the Need for a Constitutional Amendment,” on Saturday, March 21 in Bemis Hall. There will be a reception from 9–9:30 a.m. and the program will run from 9:30–11 a.m.

The workshop will describe the bill and its background as part of a national initiative to overturn the Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission. It takes place a week before Town Meeting, when Warrant Article 44 will ask Lincoln residents whether they support the We the People Act (Massachusetts Bill HD3127), which calls for a U.S. Constitutional Amendment and Amendments Convention. The proposed constitutional amendment will state that a) U. S. Constitutional rights are the rights of natural persons, i.e. human individuals, only, and b) Congress and the states shall place limits on political contributions and expenditures to ensure that all citizens have access to the political process, and recognize that the spending of money to influence elections is not protected free speech under the First Amendment.

For more information on the workshop, contact Gary Davis at (781) 259-0318 or garyddavis04@gmail.com.