The Lincoln Squirrel

News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

land use

Board approves study of DPW site

The 2014 study by the Planning Board identified four quadrants in South Lincoln as defined by the railroad tracks and Lincoln Road: (1) Codman Farm, (2) the mall, (3) Ridge Road, and (4) Lewis Street. Parcels in red are town-owned land.

The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to authorize a study of the Department of Public Works site on Lewis Street that would look at options for repurposing the site as part of a potential South Lincoln rezoning effort.

Before the vote, several residents spoke against the study, fearing that the DPW will eventually be relocated to the transfer station site off Route 2A in North Lincoln.

Objections to the proposal by the South Lincoln Planning and Implementation Committee (SLPIC) first arose publicly over the summer. Residents expressed concern about the cost or cleaning up the DPW site, which is used for trucks, road equipment and school buses, as well as the environmental sensitivity of the transfer station site.

Gary Taylor, a member of SLPIC and the Planning Board, asked selectmen to authorize $9,800 to hire civil engineering firm Weston & Sampson to assess the DPW’s functions and needs as well as potential site consolidation (e.g., leaving the DPW on Lewis Street but shrinking its footprint to repurpose some of the land), opportunities for relocating some or all of its functions to another location, and the potential for combining resources for some DPW functions with neighboring towns or MassPort.

Lincoln’s 2010 master plan reiterates a 1999 recommendation to consider redeveloping the DPW site to support housing and commerce, and to “see if it makes sense to include the DPW site in efforts to rezone, revitalize and redevelop in South Lincoln,” Taylor said. The 2014 South Lincoln study also “identified an opportunity to create additional transportation-oriented housing by redeveloping the existing light industrial properties and relocating DPW garage,” he added.

“I think this is a very necessary due diligence as part of any thoughtful planning. I think you have to take a look at this four-acre parcel and see what all the options are,” said Selectman James Craig.

Oakdale Lane resident Keith Hylton repeated the concerns he voiced to the board in July about possible well water contamination from vehicles at the transfer station site and its proximity to the Minute Man National Historical Park (MMNHP). Weston recently built a new DPW faculty that cost $15 million, he said.

“Whatever site you look at, there’s got to be procedures for meaningful involvement by stakeholders early on,” Hylton added.

Some residents wondered why the amount requested was just under the $10,000 threshold that requires the town to solicit competitive bids. Meanwhile, others including MMNHP Resources Program Manager Margie Coffin Brown speculated that $9,800 might not be enough to do a thorough study of the DPW and alternative sites.

The study “really is all about whether or not the land could be put to better use and whether or not it’s feasible to relocate it or consolidate,” Taylor said. Any future rezoning proposal would come only after “a lot of further study” on costs and impacts, and would not occur for at least five to seven years, since the town faces major school and community center projects in the near future, he added.

Letter to the editor: CCPPDC offers updates

letter

To the editor:

“Community Center Preliminary Planning and Design Committee”—with a name like that, we can’t help but succeed in our mission to bring a preliminary design to the town for consideration when discussing the current state of and future goals for the Ballfield Road campus. The townfolk spoke and the town representatives heard you: there should be collaboration between any and all committees striving to improve the nature and service of the Ballfield Road buildings.

But let’s start with introductions. Your CCPPDC members are Owen Beenhouwer, Sarah Chester, Doug Crosby, Jonathan Dwyer (for the Board of Selectmen), Steve Gladstone, Margit Griffith (vice chair, Parks and Recreation Commission), Eric Harris, Ellen Meyer Shorb (chair), Dilla Tingley, Town Administrator Tim Higgins, Director of Council on Aging Carolyn Bottum, and Director of Parks and Recreation Dan Pereira.

We have been tasked with providing the town with a community center design on the Ballfield Road campus in answer to the Lincoln community’s desire for a cohesive, cost-effective and community-spirited plan for Lincoln. We hope to provide enough information to help answer questions such as:

  • What is the realistic cost of a serviceable community center?
  • What does a community center do differently from other town spaces, and why is this important? (Much of this already addressed by prior studies, and we’re happy to review.)
  • Is it feasible and fiscally responsible to build the school and community center simultaneously or sequentially?
  • Can/should the same architect and/or construction company build both?
  • May the school and community center be built at the same time, or does the school need to keep current Hartwell buildings intact for alternate classrooms during the school build? Or are there other factors?

…and we hope to answer the questions you and we don’t know about yet!

The CCPPDC met a few times over the summer and has opened the request for quotes from architectural firms to work with us, reviewed their quotes, and is scheduling interviews. Our next step will be to choose a firm with which to work and to introduce them to you, the School Building Committee (SBC) and the architect they have chosen (if different)… which leads to a first response to the question “can we use the same architect?”

Well, yes and no. School buildings are very specialized structures and the architectural firms who design them tend to be quite focused on just that type of building. An architectural firm that promises they can do anything from a storage shed to a 20-story building probably isn’t the firm we’re hoping will design our next school building. Similarly, community centers tend to be a bit of a different creature and some firms make these designs their specialty. The SBC and CCPPDC have made it very clear to all parties that this is a collaborative effort by our two groups and we are requiring similar collaboration if the selected firms are different.

You will be hearing from the CCPPDC as we progress. You are always welcome to attend our open meetings and we hope to have a few community feedback events as plans develop. We will be at the SBC visioning meetings on October 3 and 17—will you? Once a month, a joint update will be provided by the SBC and CCPPDC, and you will likely see brief updates about one committee in the updates from the other. We’re also working on a CCPPDC page on the town website and hope to make more informative very soon.

Sincerely,

Margit Griffith on behalf of the CCPPD

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters 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.

Public hearings coming up

Planning Board

The Planning Board will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. to review an application for Site Plan Review. The applicant, Robert Domnitz, 21 Mill St., proposes to add a ground-mounted solar array.

Zoning Board of Appeals

The Zoning Board of the Appeals of the Town of Lincoln will hold a public hearing on Thursday, Oct. 5 at 7:30 p.m. on the following petitions:

  • Wendy and Richard Finnerty, 7 Old Farm Rd., for a special permit to replace an existing carport with a garage.
  • Joshua and Cailin Gidlewski, 54 Tower Rd., for a special permit for a chicken coop.
  • Natalie Miller, 107 Old County Rd., for renewal of a special permit for an accessory apartment.
  • DeNormandie Farm Real Estate Trust, 65 Trapelo Rd., for renewal and transfer of name of a special permit for an accessory apartment.
  • Stephen and Emily Nohrden, 14 Old Cambridge Turnpike, for renewal of a special permit for an accessory apartment.
  • Sandra Bradlee, 259 Old Concord Rd., for renewal of a special permit for an accessory apartment.
  • Martha DeCesare, 244 Concord Rd., for renewal of a special permit for an accessory apartment.

 

Public hearings coming up

 

Historic District Commission

The Historic District Commission will hold public hearings on Tuesday, Sept. 5 starting at 7:30 p.m. to consider the followng applications:

  • Michael Barnicle and Anne Finucane for a Certificate of Appropriateness for a new structure known as a sleeping cottage at 20 Trapelo Rd.
  • John and Lara MacLachlan to replace 15 windows and a side door at 49 Bedford Rd.

Zoning Board of Appeals

The Zoning Board of the Appeals will hold a public hearing on Thursday, Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m. to hear and to act on the following petitions for renewal of a special permit for an accessory apartment:

  • Erin Kelly and Lionel McPherson, 2 Forester Rd.
  • Sarah Cannon Holden, 60 Weston Rd.
  • Andrew Pickett, 12 Longmeadow Rd.
  • Kelly and Lincoln Greenhill, 12 Page Farm Rd.
  • William Churchill, 6 Horses Crossing
  • Peter Von Mertens and Dea Angiolillo, 16 Tower Rd.

The ZBA will also hold a public hearing that night to hear and act on two more applications:

  • Charlene McCart Jackson, trustee of McCart Realty Trust, 14-16 and 22-24 Lewis St., for an extension of an existing special permit for the expansion of non-conforming residential use in a B-2 District.
  • James Pingeon and Elizabeth Graver, 47 Old Sudbury Rd., for a special permit to extend the roof to cover the landing outside the front door.

Property tax classification hearing

The Board of Selectmen will hold a public hearing on Monday, Sept. 11 at 7:30 p.m. for the purpose of determining for fiscal year 2018 the percentage of the real estate property tax burden that shall be borne by the residential and commercial classifications of property respectively. General inquiries prior to the hearing may be directed to the Assessors’ Office, 781 259-2611.

Letter to the editor: DPW proposal generates important questions

letter

To the editor:

I was heartened to read the story (“Residents wary of planned study on relocation of DPW,” August 14, 2017) about the July 31 Board of Selectmen meeting where several Lincoln residents voiced strong objections to the proposal within the South Lincoln Planning and Implementation Committee (SLPIC) to relocate the DPW facility to the undeveloped 37-acre parcel on Mill Street that houses the transfer station.

I spoke in opposition to the proposal, noting that the 37-acre Mill Street parcel is an environmentally sensitive site. Although some have referred to the parcel as the “transfer station site,” the transfer station actually takes up a very small portion of the parcel. The vast majority of the 37 acres are in a natural state and could easily be mistaken for Lincoln conservation land. The area is residential. Moreover, the Mill Street parcel sits well within the Cambridge Reservoir watershed.

Almost all of the many residents living near the Mill Street parcel are on well water. The activities of the DPW facility, fueling and maintenance of heavy equipment and storage of hazardous waste, would impose a risk to the water sources of homeowners in the vicinity of the parcel if the DPW were to be relocated there. In addition, the DPW activities would impose a risk of contamination to an important source of Cambridge’s water.

As a town, we owe a duty to our own residents to avoid subjecting any group of them to a substantial risk of harm through the actions of our elected officials. In addition, we owe a duty to the people of Cambridge to protect their water sources from contamination by pollutants.

Although I spoke of the Mill Street area at the meeting, the point I urged on the Board of Selectmen applies with equal force to every community in the town. The DPW facility has proven itself to be environmentally harmful. I asked the selectmen to adopt a resolution either prohibiting or strongly discouraging the relocation of the DPW to any area within the town that is substantially more environmentally sensitive than its current location. I happen to be aware of the sensitivity of the Mill Street parcel, but there may be other areas under consideration by SLPIC that are also sensitive (e.g., because of similar well water dependency). So far, SLPIC has not revealed any other alternative sites under consideration.

There are many other issues noted by North Lincoln residents who attended the Board of Selectmen meeting (a video recording can be found here).

One such issue is the enormous price tag of the proposal. Weston recently constructed a new DPW facility at a cost of $15 million. The remediation costs (at the current site) alone would run into the millions, and cannot be estimated precisely until the current facility is destroyed and remediation requirements fully evaluated. The overall expense would contribute to an inordinate tax burden and could crowd out other projects such as the new school building or the community center.

The enormous relocation costs (to any area) might be acceptable if all town residents would benefit greatly from adopting the proposal. However, the goal of the relocation proposal is inconsistent with the town’s history of development—as a zero-sum scheme, it would disadvantage one part of town to offer a phantom benefit to another part. In addition, the proposal would result in the taxpayer subsidization of a private commercial developer. Why should Lincoln residents incur a burden of tens of millions of dollars to subsidize a private developer?

I hope town residents will urge SLPIC to present a careful and thorough examination of the costs and benefits of the relocation proposal before asking the town to give $9,800 to a consulting firm to study the feasibility of relocation. The current request for funds from SLPIC—a vague, one-page letter that appears to assume that the selectmen are all on board—is completely silent on the potential taxpayer costs of the proposal, the potential for environmental harm, and even a justification for the ultimate goal. Why spend scarce public resources studying the feasibility of a proposal that has not been adequately justified and most likely would be harmful to the town if implemented?

Sincerely,

Keith Hylton
5 Oakdale Lane

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters 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.

Lincoln property sales in July

  • 140 Lincoln Rd. (a Ryan Estate unit) — Daniel Hertzel to Robert L. and Ruth Mozzi for $463,000 (July 31)
  • 29 Lincoln Rd. — Paul M. Blanchfield to Jane K. O’Rourke and Ursula A. Matulonis for $1,325,000 (July 27)
  • 3B South Commons — John C. Hessler to Abbey B. Salon for $360,000 (July 19)
  • 65 Winter St. — Darlene Mula Trust to David Johnston for $992,000 (July 17)
  • 140 Lincoln Rd. (a Ryan Estate unit) — Robert T. Ferguson Sr. to William N. and Haekyung K. Weir for $475,000 (July 13)
  • 263 Concord Rd. — Paul C.R. Edwards to Nicholas and Gretchen Covino for $920,000 (July 13)
  • 8 Boyce Farm Rd. — Ren Dahai to James C. Anson for $850,000 (July 12)
  • 20 Birchwood Lane — Myrna J. Beecher Trust to Sharla F. Levine for $599,000 (July 6)

Residents wary of planned study on location of DPW

Several residents at a recent Board of Selectmen meeting protested the notion of moving the Department of Public Works to the transfer station area, but planning officials stressed that they intend to study a range of options for the DPW site.

The South Lincoln Planning and Implementation Committee (SLPIC) plans to ask the Board of Selectmen for about $9,000 to pay a consultant to study the DPW site on Lewis Street. SLPIC and others are interested in the possibility of using part or all of that property as part of a larger effort to revitalize the South Lincoln area centering on the train station and surrounding commercial area. Moving the DPW elsewhere would free up valuable land that could be put to commercial, residential, and/or municipal use.

The issue arose at a selectmen’s meeting in June and again on July 31, although SLPIC postponed a planned appearance at that meeting. Nevertheless, several residents spoke in opposition to the idea of moving the DPW to the transfer station.

“That’s probably one of the most environmentally sensitive sites you could find in this town,” said Oakdale Lane resident Keith Hylton, noting that the DPW’s work involved diesel fuel and other chemicals and the transfer station lies within the Cambridge reservoir watershed. Some houses in the area also use well water, he added. In addition, there could be contamination in the soil at the Lewis Street site that could cost “millions” to remediate if the town planned to convert it to some otherl use, Hylton said.

If the Lewis Street study does show environmental issues that need to be addressed, “you can’t ignore it,” said former Planning Board member Robert Domnitz, a Mill Street resident. “If you start walking down this path, you may find yourself locked into a cleanup that not only costs a lot of money but impairs the forward-looking value of that parcel.”

“We understand that this is a sensitive issue,” Lynn DeLisi of SLPIC, who is also a member of the Planning Board, said on Sunday. Some years ago, a different study apparently recommended moving the DPW to the transfer station site, “but we don’t know details; that’s partly why were having another meeting” before going before selectmen with a budget request, she said.

There is no language in the draft charge for the yet-to-be hired consultant about the transfer station, and SLPIC will look at a variety of options for the DPW site, including moving some functions to a neighboring town or simply preserving the status quo, DeLisi said. Also, if the consultant makes a recommendation that SPLIC or a majority of residents are opposed to, “we don’t have to pay attention to it.”

However, if the new study does show potential hazards from environmental contamination on Lewis Street that must be rectified, “we have a right to know about it—it’s right in the center of town,” DeLisi said.

Also at the July 31 Board of Selectmen meeting (as summarized by former Selectman Peter Braun), the board:

  • Accepted a plaque presented by members of the Donaldson family to rededicate the Donaldson Room and to honor Robert Donaldson (1870-1964), who was a selectman for 28 years and builder of some 80 Lincoln houses and the original town office building.
  • Met with Mothers Out Front, an organization that includes Lincoln residents, that is focused on natural gas leaks and other environmental issues.
  • Approved a curb cut requested for 19 Granville Rd., following a recommendation by the Planning Board.
  • Discussed concerns raised by abutters with respect to a new Wayland soccer field to be located in a meadow close to the Lincoln town line in the Oxbow Road area.
  • Heard reports from Town Administrator Tim Higgins regarding:
    • Questions raised by several residents about compliance of the June 19 Board meeting with the Open Meeting Law.
    • Requests by wireless carriers for installation of repeaters on utility poles.
    • Initial activities of the Community Center committee.
  • Scheduled further discussion of Old Winter Street traffic questions for September 25.
  • Scheduled the State of the Town Meeting for November 4 and had an initial discussion about the agenda.
  • Discussed its continuing efforts to coordinate with the Housing Commission and other boards regarding the town’s affordable housing strategy.
  • Discussed proposed content for its next newsletter.
  • Heard liaison reports from:
    • Selectman Jennifer Glass on the School Building Committee’s activities, including its engagement of an Owner’s Project Manager and its process for considering an architectural firm.
    • Selectman James Craig on highlights of a report from a consultant by the Cycling Safety Committee on ideas for accommodating cycling on roadways.

Property sales in June

  • 35 Huckleberry Hill — James R. Tobin to Emanuel G. Lewin for $800,000 (June 28)
  • 108 Concord Rd. — Daniel M. Merfeld to Maureen Masterson and Roberto Santamaria for $750,000 (June 27)
  • 141 Weston Rd. — Keith M. Gilbert to Donna A. Jeffers for $2,000,000 (June 22)
  • 8 Todd Pond Rd. — Samuel P. Perkins to Miriam Zoll and Michael Shashoua for $1,367,000 (June 15)
  • 173 Tower Rd. — Mark Meltz to Edward D. and Carolyn C. Huber for $1,200,000 (June 8)

Drumlin Farm trail to become part of Bay Circuit Trail

Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary will mark its new inclusion as part of the Bay Circuit Trail (BCT) with a ribbon-cutting celebration on Saturday, July 15 at 12:30 p.m. and a volunteer work day.

A section of an existing Drumlin Farm trail will become part of the 230-mile BCT greenway, which arcs through 37 communities in eastern Massachusetts along hiking, biking, and paddling routes linking Plum Island to the north and Kingston Bay to the south. Signage and distinctive trail markers will indicate where the trail passes through the wildlife sanctuary. Drumlin Farm now joins Mass Audubon’s Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary in Sharon and Joppa Flats Education Center in Newburyport as conserved greenspaces that are part of the BCT.

The Bay Circuit Trail’s origins date to 1929 with a proposal for a protected greenbelt through the expanding metropolitan area  based on concepts reflected in landscape visionary Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace in Boston. After some initial progress, the ambitious conservation initiative ground to a halt for lack of funds and in the face of explosive development.

The long-dormant project regained momentum in the 1980s, spurred by conservationists, trails advocates, and the state’s environmental agencies. By 1990, the Bay Circuit Alliance had been formed. That group now includes hundreds of volunteers and numerous local, statewide, and regional organizations, including Mass Audubon and the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC), which serves as the BCT’s administrative and stewardship manager.

Local management of the Bay Circuit Trail is typically the responsibility of the communities it passes through. In Lincoln’s case, the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust oversees stewardship, although Mass Audubon will continue to care for the section of the trail passing through the sanctuary.

As part of the day’s events, the AMC, in collaboration with local BCT partners, will lead a day-long Bay Circuit volunteer work event starting at 9 a.m. to support the new trail section and local conservation lands. To sign up for the volunteer event, contact AMC/Bay Circuit Trail Volunteer Program Supervisor Beth Gula at bgula@outdoors.org or visit www.baycircuit.org/events for more information.

“With the Bay Circuit Trail now passing through Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary, both sanctuary visitors and BCT ‘through-hikers’ will be able to enjoy enhanced outdoors experiences,” Mass Audubon President Gary Clayton said. “As a conservation organization committed to helping people connect with nature, we appreciate how the Bay Circuit supports that same important goal, and we are particularly happy to partner with the Bay Circuit Alliance and the Appalachian Mountain Club in this valuable work.”

“We are excited to celebrate this significant milestone for the Bay Circuit Trail in partnership with Mass Audubon and the Bay Circuit Alliance,” said John Judge, Appalachian Mountain Club President and CEO. “The sanctuary greatly enhances this section of the trail for the enjoyment of all who pass through by allowing it to be rerouted off-road to a protected conservation area in close proximity to numerous historic landmarks, including Drumlin Farm, the Codman Estate, and the Gropius House.”

Public hearings coming up

Zoning Board of Appeals

Thursday, July 6 at 7:30 p.m. to hear and act on the following requests:

  • Gail Alden, 240 Concord Rd., for a special permit to build a two-story detached garage.
  • Lloyd Dahmen, 10 Grasshopper Lane, for a special permit to construct a garden shed.
  • Daniello Jeha, 170 South Great Rd., for a special permit to sell used cars.
  • Stephen Gladstone, 67 Winter St., for renewal of a special permit for an accessory apartment.
  • Deborah Race and James LaPlante, 41 South Great Rd., for a special permit for an addition and expansion with a two-car garage.

Planning Board

  • Tuesday, July 11 at 7 p.m. to review an application for Site Plan Review. The applicant, Robert Pace, proposes to construct a new home at 169 Lexington Rd.

Conservation Commission

  • Wednesday, July 12 at 7:30 p.m. in response to the Notice of Intent by Edward and Ellen Julian for a replacement septic system in the Outer Buffer Zone Resource Area at 104 Todd Pond Rd.
  • Wednesday, July 12 at 8:15 p.m. in response to the Notice of Intent by F. Douglas Adams for construction of a new home and associated landscape elements in the Outer Buffer Zone Resource Area at Granville and Llanover Roads.