The Lincoln Squirrel – News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

Candidates offer their views and make their pitch

Earlier this year, the Lincoln Squirrel asked candidates running in the annual town election (then scheduled for late March) to discuss their experience and the important issues they thought would face their board or commission in coming months and years. The Squirrel published responses from candidates for the Water Commission and the Planning Board (the only contested race this year) earlier this spring, as well as three new pieces by Planning Board candidates Lynn DeLisi, Bob Domnitz, and Rick Rundell. See the full slate on this specimen ballot. Here are the responses from the remaining candidates.

Manley B. Boyce II

Cemetery Commission (22-year incumbent)

Hard to believe that I have been on this commission since 1998. Before being on this commission, I spent three years on the Emergency Fund with the Council of Aging under the direction of the Board of Selectmen.

Although some of the land formation has changed, the direction of the members of the Cemetery Commission has not. We have always, as a commission, been united in our mission to support our townspeople with a beautiful and restful sanctuary to respect and honor our friends and family members.

If reelected to this position, I would strive to be a part of this commission to continue to oversee and orchestrate the tranquil presence of our cemeteries. This requires funding and land expansion that is needed now and will be required to accommodate future generations.

As our cemetery expands, we find we now need a full-time custodian to oversee the preservation of the cemetery land and for the ongoing burials. Funding is imperative to achieve this goal. A second and crucial funding need is for a mini-excavator to reach our hard-to-access lots. This mini-excavator would be shared, used, and maintained by the Highway Department;

Jonathan Dwyer

Board of Selectmen (three-year incumbent)

Having finished one term on the Board of Selectmen, I am running for reelection. A key BOS responsibility is to ensure the town’s government is responsive to residents. I consistently hear concerns about the cost of living in town, the need for expanded social services, and desires for developing a more diverse tax base. Residents want a community center, a vibrant town center, greater town commitment to net-zero living, and improved transportation infrastructure supporting multi-mobility and safety for all roadway users. Voices also call for more diverse housing, expanded conservation of land, and greater investment in our historic structures. 

Considering that big projects like the town office renovation and athletic fields expansion are done, the new school project is underway and Oriole Landing is on course to meet our affordable housing goals, I think it is time to discern the town’s current priorities and update its 11-year-old Comprehensive Long Range Plan. I would be honored to serve another term on the board to listen and to lead in partnership with colleagues Jennifer Glass and James Craig.

I respectfully ask that you make me the last “Selectman” to run for office in Lincoln (there is a citizen’s petition to rename BOS to “Select Board” at a future Town Meeting yet to be scheduled).

Harold Engstrom

Lincoln-Sudbury High School District Committee (first-time candidate)

While I have helped on boards around Lincoln before (Codman, soccer, etc.), I haven’t run for nor been elected to any position anywhere. In the three-year term I’m running for, probably the most important part of the job will be helping to select new leadership for L-S because the current superintendent will come to the end of her tenure. My motivation for running for L-S School Committee is very general: provide responsible stewardship and help our community maximize the potential and development of all students and staff at L-S. I expect that my approach will be to (1) first understand how the L-S school committee currently functions and why it functions that way, then (2) understand what the currently stated guiding principles and currently approved plan for L-S is, and then (3) work to execute duties as decided on by the committee. It is possible that I may not agree with the majority sometimes, but that will not keep me from working constructively to do what we vote to do. Our public schools are our biggest and most important ongoing community project.

I was asked to run and I also feel that giving back is important. My sons graduated from L-S and my daughter graduates this spring. Helping to keep L-S a great place for others, and possibly helping to make it even better, would be a privilege.

Derek P. Fitzgerald

Commissioner of Trust Funds (six-year incumbent)

The town’s trust investments have had a good run over the last several years as the markets have gone up significantly. The immediate task is to keep a good monitoring program in place and to avoid unneeded risks and complexity. At some point the markets will turn and trusts need to be positioned to minimize risk to capital yet still earn a reasonable return on investment. I believe the Lincoln trusts investments are well positioned, but this is an on-going process. 

In the last year, the board directed our portfolio managers to minimize the trusts investments in the fossil fuel industry in pursuit of the ESG goal of supporting a greener planet. Lincoln didn’t have much exposure to begin with so the impact has been minimal on the investment holdings and performance.

Less glamorously but perhaps just as importantly for the prudent management of the trust, the board updated and adopted a new investment policy to direct our portfolio managers in the oversite and allocation of the town trusts.

Adam Hogue

School Committee (one-year incumbent)

The biggest challenge facing us currently is the current pandemic. My goals on the committee is to keep our budget fiscally responsible to the town and also be an advocate for our students to give them the best education possible.

Sarah Cannon Holden

Town Moderator (12-year incumbent)

I am running for my fourth three-year term as Lincoln’s Town Moderator. My prior experience includes six years on the Finance Committee, two years on the Community Preservation Committee, nine years on the L-S School Committee, and six years on the Board of Selectmen. In each position I have learned a little bit more about the town (and probably myself), and I cherish the friendships that I have made while serving the town.

My interests in civics, politics, and service led me to law school 20 years after I graduated from college. I have had an active and interesting career in labor arbitration and mediation. It was interrupted briefly in 2001-02 when I ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor as a qualified Clean Elections Candidate. My role now as moderator seems to fit in with this background. I certainly enjoy the role and the challenges that it poses. I hope always to conduct a fair, open and respectful meeting, and to be receptive to new ideas for making the meeting run efficiently without sacrificing the robust and complex essence of democracy.

My three children attended the Lincoln and Lincoln-Sudbury Public Schools.

This year’s Town Meeting will be a new experience for all of us. It will be in a tent on June 13; it will be a very abbreviated meeting with all presentations having been done online in the weeks and days beforehand, and it will include a comprehensive consent calendar with only three other articles for our consideration. Our primary concern is the health of all in attendance. With that in mind, I believe that it is important for us to work through the agenda carefully and as efficiently as possible.

I will do my best to lead us through the meeting after so many volunteers and staff have done the work to get us prepared. Please check in early on June 13 so we can get started at 9:30 a.m.

I ask for your vote on Monday, June 15. The polls at the Hartwell School parking lot will be open from 12–4 p.m. Thank you.

Fred Mansfield

Board of Health (20-year incumbent)

Important issues for the upcoming year(s) include:

  • Infectious diseases and the town’s response, e.g. EEE, Covid-19, West Nile, tick-borne disease
  • Water quality
  • Natural gas leaks
  • Town nurse coverage for elderly and disabled
  • Immunization advocacy: measles, flu, Covid -19
  • Issues around control of nicotine and cannabinoid distribution and use

Ellen Meadors

Board of Assessors (18-year incumbent)

The main goals of the Board of Assessors are to:

  • Provide fair and equitable assessments based on true market values
  • Meet with citizens and citizen groups to discuss their assessment concerns
  • Propose and support tax relief measures for those who need them
  • Coordinate with and support other departments, boards, and commissions
  • Incorporate new technologies to improve assessments, enhance services and reduce costs.

In the next few years, we expect to be incorporating new technologies into our assessing process. In particular, our assessing contractor, Regional Resource Group, is finding it more and more challenging to do the yearly periodic re-inspections of properties. Qualified assessing staff is getting more and more difficult to find and some homeowners feel it‘s an invasion of privacy to have people walking around their house measuring the exterior. We are hoping to be able to use high-definition aerial images and image processing software tools to do detailed exterior inspections via computer that are sufficiently accurate to meet State requirements. The Board will be working with RRG to define a new process and get State approval.

Tara Mitchell

School Committee (three-year incumbent and current chair)

There are so many exciting aspects of working with the school district at this point. The new primary and middle schools at Hanscom and the Lincoln campus renovation project is allowing our district to advance into 21st-century education. Teachers at both schools are building skills, honing techniques, and collaborating to help better prepare students for the challenges they will face in the future. Lincoln staff have started to reimagine how they use spaces and how they work with students and colleagues now and in the future.

As a school committee member, I’m excited to support the district’s strategic plan, which focuses on professional development, elevating instructional practices within all classrooms, and providing deeper learning for all students. I look forward to communicating how this vision is becoming a reality and ensuring the policies and budget recommendations continue to support the district’s goals. 

Rob Stringer

Recreation Department (first-time candidate)

No previous government offices held, but I am a soccer coach, baseball and basketball assistant coach, and I’m on the PTO.

There are a few things I’m very interested in helping the Rec Department deal with in the next few years: how to handle the adjustments to our yearly program of events due to the school building work (Fourth of July, parking for the pool, use of fields) and how can we build on the work to leave a legacy that makes us stronger. Look for new ways to engage Lincoln residents and surrounding communities using the wonderful parks and people we have. 

I enjoy working with the communities I’m already involved in (PTO and local sports) and thought it would be another way to stay involved as my kids age out of my ability to coach them.

Forum offers a closer look at school project items

The items in green are those for which the SBC is seeking additional funding at Town Meeting (click image to enlarge).

The School Building Committee answered questions and made its case for appropriating another $828,945 for the school project during a June 4 public forum conducted via Zoom.

The forum, which had 27 participants (about half of whom were SBC members and construction staff), was one of two such events scheduled before the June 13 Town Meeting, when residents will vote on moving money from the town’s free cash to restore some of the items that were cut from the project after bids came in $3.5 million over budget. The second Zoom forum will be on Monday, June 8 at 8 p.m. (participants must preregister but may do so right up until the start of the event). Click here to see a recording of Thursday’s forum.

The $828,945 would add back some items that either cannot be restored later, or could be restored later but only at significantly higher cost. The requested amount is a reduction from the $2.08 million that the SBC had planned to seek in March before Town Meeting had to be postponed and the town budget reexamined in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The SBC outlined background material and the list items on the list in this memo and this slide deck shown during the forum, when officials offered more details about some of them:

  • The obsolete auditorium divider dates from the building’s opening in 1963 and is necessary for separating the stage and performance space from the lecture hall. Installing a new one later would mean tearing up some of the newly refurbished areas that are being particularly funded by a gift from the late Harriet Todd.
  • The sun control louvers in several areas of the building are needed to reduce glare and save money on heating and cooling.
  • An interior glass wall will allow more natural light into a deeper part of the building and allow greater space flexibility. Also, although minimizing contagion was not its original intent, the interior glass wall will enable teachers to separate students into smaller groups while “still maintaining sight lines and supervision,” Superintendent of Schools Becky McFall said.
  • Concrete pavers are much more durable and attractive than asphalt, and ripping up the surface and installing pavers later “would not be good value for money,” Selectman Jennifer Glass said. “Going back and undoing work makes it much more expensive.”
  • The partial restoration of the furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) budget will allow replacement of the outdated phone system and some of the oldest furniture.

The cuts in February were “rough,” SBC co-chair Chris Fasciano said. “For the first time, the SBC needed to eliminate parts of the project that we had tried really hard to protect and that represented collective community values. They’re so important to the project that we were willing to come back to the town and ask for additional funds. The SBC is acutely award of the pressure of the current situation… but in the end, we feel the responsibility to deliver a school project with the greatest long-term value for the community.”

Not included in the June 13 request are other cuts including bike paths, playground equipment, replacement trees, interior benches, theatrical rigging, and the majority of the budget for FF&E. Some of them may be eligible for future Community Preservation Act money, Complete Streets grants, or private fundraising. 

In answer to resident Sara Mattes’s question about whether there was a “hard stop on what we’re spending,” Fasciano said the SBC has not made a decision about when or whether to come back to voters for more supplemental funding. However, the remaining FF&E budget “will have to go to the town again,” he said, as purchases have been deferred for many years while the town struggled to approve a school project. “The economic environment and town finances will be a major factor in those decisions” about any future requests, he added.

Resident David Stifter expressed disappointment at some of the cuts, saying, “it seems like we’re getting some very different from what was in the renderings.”

“The SBC is as frustrated as you are,” Fasciano replied.

“We’re all disappointed it’s not going to turn out exactly as we envisioned it… but there are so many things that are great about this project,” said Buck Creel, administrator for business and finance for the Lincoln Public Schools. “I’m actually delighted we’re able to accomplish as much as we can given all the constraints.”

Correction

The June 2 story headlined “The Commons has fewest Covid-19 deaths among area facilities,” contained on incorrect figure for the number of Covid-19 cases reported at the Sunrise in Weston assisted living facility. The correct number is less than 10, not 10–30.

The article has been corrected and also updated with a list of facilities in neighboring towns that did not appear on either of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health lists in its May 27 report (Long-Term Care Facilities With 2+ Known COVID Cases and Facility-Reported Deaths, and Assisted Living Residences With 2+ Known COVID Cases): 

[lgc_column grid=”50″ tablet_grid=”50″ mobile_grid=”100″ last=”false”]

Concord Health Care Center
Artis Senior Living
Brookhaven/Gardenview
Lexington Health Care Center
Wingate at Sudbury
Merriam Village
[/lgc_column]

Concord
Lexington
Lexington
Lexington
Sudbury
Weston

News acorns

Budget Q&A on Thursday, June 4

There will be an “Virtual Q&A” about the proposed FY 2021 budget on Thursday, June 4 at 7:30 p.m. in advance of the Annual Town Meeting on June 13. To keep the in-person Town Meeting as short and focused as possible, the Finance Committee hopes to address concerns and feedback in the virtual meeting, which will not include the full budget presentation (see below).

Please come with any questions or comments you have about the town budget. To join the Zoom meeting, click here (the password is “fincom”). The meeting will also be recorded and posted on the Town Meeting web page.

Background materials:

  • Video of the FinCom’s March 4 budget hearing, with a short preface outlining changes and updates due to the pandemic. It’s posted on YouTube for those who may want to use accelerated playback features to review material quickly.
  • Budget summary in the Board of Selectmen newsletter (see last page)
  • Town Meeting financial section and warrant plus cover memo concerning Covid-19
  • Town of Lincoln web page with presentations and documents for the 2020 Town Meeting
  • List of more public forum dates/times and links

Candlelight gathering on Friday evening

There will be a candlelight/cell phone light gathering on Friday, June 5 from 8–9 p.m. in Pierce Park. The event is being organized by a Lincoln high school student to show support for protestors demanding justice for George Floyd and all who are subject to racial profiling and discrimination. Participants are asked to bring their own cell phones/candles for light, as well as ear masks and practice social distancing.

Scout hopes to build picnic tables for Codman

Lucas Anthony

As part of his Eagle Scout project, Lucas Anthony, a junior at L-S and a Life Scout in Concord’s Boy Scout Troop 132, plans to build 10 picnic tables to replace and supplement those at Codman Community Farms, which are in poor condition. The picnic tables will allow Codman to better accommodate guests with seating when they hold their annual events.

He’s raising money via GoFundMe to buy the tools and materials (he’s raised $700 of the needed $1,500 so far) and will assemble them in his driveway by the fall. “Any donation you can make, big or small, helps greatly and improves Codman Farm’s ability to better serve our community,” he said. Click here to donate.

Kids’ workshop workshop offered by deCordova

The deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum is offering “Trees Mend Us” for kids in grades 6-8 with Hive instructor Tracie Dunn (and Maura Clarke) on Mondays and Wednesdays, June 1 and 3 and June 8 and 10 from 2:30-4 p.m. For more information and registration, click on the link or email Donna at dberube@thetrustees.org.

Covid-safe energy assessments available

HomeWorks Energy is now conducting home energy assessments in a way that will keep employees and homeowners safe. Once a homeowner signs up for an assessment, they are asked to take specific photos of their home and schedule a time to talk to an energy specialist about insulation and other energy saving measures. Afterward, the homeowner receives the no-cost LED light bulbs they requested, shipped free of charge.

Residents who sign up for a virtual home energy assessment by July 31 will receive 100% off the cost of insulating their homes. The insulation will be installed after the state stay-at-home orders are lifted. To sign up, go to LincolnEnergyChallenge.org.

HomeWorks Energy has partnered with the Lincoln Green Energy Committee since 2016 on the MassSave energy efficiency program, which helps homeowners reduce their use of fossil fuels and save money. Since 2016, more than 300 Lincoln homes have had assessments. On average, a home energy assessment saves residents about 28% on utility bills. 

Obituaries

Charles Calvin

Charles Calvin

Charles Calvin died on May 8. After a career at Polaroid, he was actively involved in Parkinson’s studies at Massachusetts General Hospital, where his brain has been donated for research. Click here for full obituary.

James Newkirk

James Newkirk

Newkirk, who died on May 17 at age 75, started and ran several businesses in transportation and other fields. He was also an addictions counselor. Click here for full obituary.

South Lincoln planning group to be downsized

A July 2019 overview of some of SLPIC’s completed and proposed improvements to the Lincoln Station area (click image to enlarge).

The South Lincoln Planning and Implementation Committee will be restructured into a smaller group and will shelve its South Lincoln rezoning proposal, at least for now

SLPIC was created in late 2016 as part of an effort to revitalize the area around the MBTA station and the Lincoln mall by enabling more business development and moderately priced housing while also encouraging pedestrian traffic and train ridership. Its subcommittees fostered projects to create a “pocket park” next and wayfinding signs, draw up a list of improvements for the MBTA station, and study the possibility of relocating the Department of Public Works to a site next to the transfer station to free up land on Lewis Street for other uses — an idea that met with protests from North Lincoln residents.

Last year, SLPIC unveiled a sweeping proposal to rezone parcels of land in South Lincoln to encourage mixed-use development with denser housing that what’s now allowed. It would also have streamlined the permitting process so that some projects could be approved by the Planning Board rather than having to go to Town Meeting. But many residents at two public forums, especially one in February 2020, were not receptive to the idea.

The committee also suffered from being simultaneously too large and too small, Planning Board members said at a May 26 meeting. It was large enough that it sometimes had trouble achieving a quorum for meetings, yet it did not include residents of the areas that would be affected, particularly the condo developments on Ridge Road.

“There was concern that opening that area up to more concentrated redevelopment might actually undercut some of the only middle-range housing in Lincoln,” Planning Board member and SLPIC co-chair Gary Taylor said.

The feedback the board received indicated that “it’s time for a bit of a rethink on how to approach this [and] find a middle ground between getting something done and letting the Planning Board loose to overdevelop the area,” Taylor added. However, because of the economic circumstances of South Lincoln businesses and the town as a whole, “we can’t really sit back and do nothing,” he added. “The problem is getting everyone to yes.”

Board members also recognized that SLIPC’s successor needs to gather more public input as it forms its proposals. “We need to get to a point where that group is meeting with the public and interested parties on some pretty regular, well publicized and well understood cadence,” chair Margaret Olson said.

“It was almost an economic development committee,” SLPIC co-chair Lynn DeLisi said. “It’s time for a change.”

The original plan was to have a vote on the rezoning proposal at a Special Town Meeting in the fall. Now the Planning Board will come up with a charge for the new group and discuss it with the Board of Selectmen before voting on a formal move. Olson proposed a smaller committee consisting of two members from the Planning Board, one from the Board of Selectmen and one from the Housing Commission.

“I am from the bottom of my heart grateful for listening to us in South Lincoln,” resident Jessica Packineau told the board. Packineau was one of the organizers of United Residents for Responsible Redevelopment, a neighborhood coalition that took issue with the rezoning proposal at the February forum.

“You all are going in the right direction,” Greenridge Lane resident June Matthews said. “All I ask for is representation of the constituents in the area.”

My Turn: DeLisi makes her case for reelection to Planning Board

(Editor’s note: DeLisi is one of three residents running for two seats on the Planning Board. The Lincoln Squirrel published statements by all three candidates in March and new statements from Rick Rundell and Bob Domnitz earlier this week. There will be an online forum for the candidates on June 11.)

Dear neighbors,

I am once again reaching out to you to ask for your vote in the upcoming Lincoln election. The fact that a seat on the Planning Board is an elected one is significant. This means that you have a choice to decide who represents you.

My background and training are not as important as what I believe in and whether I will stand up and represent what you believe in. Here is what I am for:

  • Responsible planning by collaboration with neighborhoods
  • Sensitivity to the feelings of abutters, the most affected by change
  • Keeping a DPW Site out of North Lincoln
  • Keeping the South Lincoln commercial district vibrant, but not dense with new housing
  • Keeping North Lincoln residents free from any more adversity
  • Regulations that preserve Lincoln’s unique rural and farm-friendly atmosphere
  • Preserving the historical significance of some of Lincoln’s neighborhoods and the designated historical districts
  • The highest quality education available to our children in safe facilities
  • A community center that serves our residents well
  • Safe and supportive facilities for senior residents
  • Keeping the availability of harmful substances away from our young generation
  • And… keeping Lincoln safe

While a member of the Planning Board, I actively participated in:

  • Several controversial decisions that affected the wellbeing of residents and their neighborhoods, such as whether or not marijuana establishments should be in Lincoln
  • Changing and simplifying some of the complicated process that new homeowners find in dealing with the Planning Board
  • The change of planning directors not long after I began (and drove that process)

I immediately understood the issues raised by McLean Hospital in setting up a residential home in Lincoln and misnaming therapy “education.” And I understood very clearly from my own research studies the effects marijuana establishments would have on our town. I spoke up and was active on all these issues and more. Most importantly, I listened to and consistently was sensitive to the concerns of abutters about change.

Although you may say, “Why does a psychiatrist/neuroscientist who bridges gaps between research and the clinic think she knows enough to be on a town Planning Board?” However, my seven years on the Planning Board have taught me a range of planning and architectural principles, adding up to more years than I actually spent in medical school. Scientific methods need to be applied more in our decisions than would be imagined. My background and experience have certainly helped my decision-making on the Planning Board.

One last word, with specific regard to the South Lincoln Planning and Implementation Committee: I was not happy with the way it was running from almost its beginning, and was the first to advocate that it be radically revised or abolished. It was only last week that other members of the Planning Board all agreed to change it. However, I still am advocating for a member of the committee of five to be someone who represents the residents most affected.

I welcome comments, suggestions, and concerns anytime. You can email me at DeLisi76@aol.com or call me at 516-528-5366.

Sincerely,

Lynn E DeLisi
125 South Great Rd.

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their 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.

My Turn: Feinberg endorses Domnitz for Planning Board

Dear Lincolnites,

It’s been a while since you heard from me. Some of you may remember me as the guy who wrote that weekly column in the Lincoln Journal about life and politics in Lincoln. Well, I’m ba-ack! At least for this one time, to wholeheartedly endorse Bob Domnitz for the Planning Board.

Bob is running for re-election because of his concern about the Planning Board’s current efforts to usurp Town Meeting’s role in approving significant development projects within the town. The Planning Board would like to revise the Zoning Bylaw so it alone would become the final arbiter on such projects, rather than Town Meeting.

Lincoln has an almost 300-year time-honored tradition and history of the Town Meeting form of government. Now is not the time to strip Town Meeting of its authority and weaken it. Join me in electing Bob Domnitz to the Planning Board.

Sincerely,

Neil Feinberg
104 Concord Rd., Lincoln

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their 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.

The Commons has fewest Covid-19 deaths among area facilities

By Alice Waugh

The Commons in Lincoln has accounted for 16 of the town’s 36 cases of Covid-19, and all of the seven fatalities in Lincoln were residents of the facility who had additional medical issues, Lincoln Public Health Nurse Tricia McGean reported on June 1.

The virus has hit nursing and assisted living facilities especially hard nationwide, since their residents are usually elderly and often have comorbidities (two or more chronic diseases) as well as living in close quarters. Staff members often work at more than one facility, which may have increased cross-facility infection, especially earlier during the pandemic. Thirty-one staff members at The Commons have tested positive for the virus and 28 of them have recovered, McGean told the Board of Selectmen on June 1. 

One hundred fifty-four residents of independent living units at the Commons were recently tested over a two-day period, and all were negative, McGean said. Those residents have been quarantined in their apartments and cottages, getting meals and groceries delivered outside their doors by staff.

“If you don’t go out, you can’t catch this virus,” she observed.

All staff and residents at The Commons are now being routinely tested going forward, said McGean, who praised the facility for its transparency with its residents and officials as well as its efforts in limiting infection control with personal protective equipment, isolation, and quarantining.

In a bit of good news, The Commons has seen fewer deaths than all but one of the long-term care facilities in the area, according to data posted on May 27 by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH). The Campion Center, a 70-bed nursing home for Jesuit priests in Weston, has had one patient who contracted Covid-19 and 12 staff members who tested positive, and all 13 have recovered, said Executive Director Nick Gilbert. As of May 27, Weston had 106 cases among its 7,527 residents, state records show.

As a percentage of its patient capacity, the 42-bed Rivercrest Rehab and Nursing (part of Newbury Court in Concord) has had the most deaths at 29% (12 deaths), closely followed by the 40-bed Royal at Wayland Nursing and Rehab Center at 28% (11 deaths).

McGean also reported that seven Lincoln residents have had an antibody test for Covid-19. She noted last month that a positive antibody test could mean isolation for the person until they got a different test to see whether they currently had the virus. The DPH still recommends this, but in a sign of the rapidly evolving public health guidelines, the federal Centers for Disease Control has withdrawn the same recommendation. “Right now we’re getting two different stories,” she said.

There are no facilities in Lincoln that offer testing for active infection with Covid-19, though there are now hundreds of testing sites all over Massachusetts.

As the state slowly reopens, McGean’s work will now include educating staff at summer day camps about infection prevention. Gov. Charlie Baker announced this week that camps and child care centers can open as soon as June 8 with restrictions.

Click the arrow within a column header to sort by that column:

Long-term care facilities with 2+ known Covid cases and facility-reported deaths

TownTotal
cases		DatePopulation
(2010)		Cases as %
of 2010 pop.
Lexington1514/15/2033,4800.45%
Weston654/13/2012,0670.54%
Bedford*644/15/2014,1260.45%
Sudbury494/13/2018,9400.26%
Wayland264/10/2013,7200.19%
Concord224/13/2019,3230.11%
Lincoln164/12/206,7260.24%

* Staff and residents
** Cumulative COVID-19 deaths – includes residents only

Assisted living residences with 2+ known Covid cases

TownPopulation (2010 census)
Lexington33,480
Concord19,323
Sudbury18,940
Bedford14,126
Wayland13,720
Weston12,067
Lincoln6,726

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Area facilities that do not appear on either list:

  • Concord Health Care Center (Concord)
  • Artis Senior Living (Lexington)
  • Brookhaven/Gardenview (Lexington)
  • Lexington Health Care Center (Lexington)
  • Wingate at Sudbury (Sudbury)
  • Merriam Village (Weston)

Series of public forums scheduled in advance of Town Meeting

Town officials have planned public forums on various aspects of the fiscal year 2021 budget that will be voted on at the Annual Town Meeting on Saturday, June 13. The forums offer an opportunity for residents to ask questions after viewing slide presentations that will be posted ahead of time on the Town Meeting page of the town’s website. 

Click on the name of an event to register for the forum and get the Zoom link. Note: this table will be updated as necessary with passwords or other updated instructions.