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

News acorns

Fill out survey for clean heating and cooling

The Lincoln Green Energy Committee is partnering with Concord and Carlisle to apply for HeatSmart Mass, a program sponsored by the Mass Clean Energy Center that will allow Lincolnites to install qualified clean heating and cooling systems at reduced prices. For Lincoln to qualify for the MassCEC’s application process, the committee needs your help. Whether you’re interested in air-source heat pumps, ground-source heat pumps, central biomass heating, or solar hot water, or aren’t sure what these solutions are all about, please fill out this Google survey by Saturday, Aug. 12 to help members design the program to meet Lincoln’s needs. Anyone with questions may contact Belinda Gingrich at belinda.gingrich@gmail.com.

St. Anne’s closed for nine days

Due to parking lot work, St. Anne’s in-the-Fields Church will be closed after church on Sunday, Aug. 13 and remain closed through Tuesday, Aug. 22. All regularly mid-week meetings will be cancelled, as well as the Sunday morning service of Holy Eucharist at 9 a.m. on August 20. The 9 a.m. service resumes on Sunday, Aug. 27, and the last summer Sunday service will be Labor Day Weekend (Sunday, Sept. 3). On September 10, the church returns to the normal schedule of three Sunday services at 8 a.m., 10 a.m., and 5 p.m.

Jazz concert on Aug. 13

There will be a free live jazz concert on Sunday, Aug. 13 from 2–5 p.m. in Bemis Hall featuring the Steve Taddeo Quartet and Vocals: Jeff Barnhart, stride piano; Paul Midiri, trombone and vibes; Joe Midiri, soprano sax and reeds; Steve Taddeo, drums; and Caroline Griep, vocals.

Arts and crafts festival at Codman Estate

The 35th annual Fine Arts and Crafts Festival at the Codman Estate will take place on Saturday, Sept. 9 (rain or shine) from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. There will be live music, over 100 juried artisans, museum tours and food vendors. Admission is $5 (free for Historic New England members and children under 12).

Sam Durant win’s deCordova’s Rappaport Prize

Sam Durant (photo by Sarah Waldorf/J. Paul Getty Museum)

The deCordova Scultpure Park and Museum has announced that Sam Durant is the 18th recipient of the prestigious Rappaport Prize, an annual award of $25,000 given to a contemporary artist with strong connections to New England. Durant works in a variety of media including painting, sculpture, drawing, and installations to address the varying relationships between culture and politics. He draws inspiration from American history and engages subjects as diverse as the civil rights movement, southern rock music, and modernism. His art makes connections between history and present ongoing sociocultural debates, often calling attention to forgotten events from the past.

“It is such a wonderful surprise and tremendous honor to be recognized in my home region with the Rappaport Prize,” Durant said. “I am a New Englander to the core—its remarkable history has profoundly shaped and inspired me. The deCordova Museum was a big part of my formation as an artist, and my teacher George Greenamyer’s work Mass Art Vehicle at deCordova was one of the first public sculptures I loved. My work often puts me in the cross hairs of contentious and difficult debates, as it has recently, so deCordova’s acknowledgement is particularly timely—a cool drink of water for a parched soul.”

The public is invited to attend the Rappaport Prize Lecture with Sam Durant on Thursday, Oct. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at the museum. Admission is free.

News from the School Building Committee

Below are the latest updates from the the School Building Committee (SBC), which continues to meet throughout the summer:

  • There will be a tour of the new Hanscom Middle School with SBC members on Wednesday, Aug. 9 from 7–9 p.m. For Hanscom Air Force Base security purposes, those interested in attending must provide their full legal name and birthdate to Janice Gross (jgross@lincnet.org) by noon on Thursday, Aug. 3.
  • Daedalus Projects, Inc. has been hired as the Owner’s Project Manager (OPM). The OPM serves as the town’s advocate and helps communicate the planning process to the community and keep the Lincoln School project on schedule and on budget.
  • The Outreach Subcommittee is reviewing feedback from the 364 “Shaping Our Town’s Evaluation Criteria” survey responses that were submitted and will provide a summary in the next few weeks.
  • SBC member Craig Nicholson was appointed as a liaison to the Campus Coordinating Group, joining SBC Chair Chris Fasciano and Superintendent Becky McFall. The group was authorized by the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee to facilitate collaboration between the SBC and the Community Center Planning and Preliminary Design Committee.
  • Five design firms have been selected as finalists for the Lincoln School project. The finalists will be interviewed on the evenings of August 15 and 16 starting at 6 p.m. in the Hartwell multipurpose room. The interviews are open to the public.
  • The Outreach Subcommittee will meet on Thursday, Aug. 3 from 5-6:30 p.m. in the Hartwell Multipurpose Room and will begin discussions about creating the Lincoln School Project website. All are welcome to attend.

For more information, see the SBC web page. Questions or comments may be emailed to SBC@lincnet.org.

Obituaries

Eleanor Mahoney

Jack and Eleanor Mahoney

Eleanor (Davis) Mahoney, 79, of Lincoln, died peacefully following a long illness on July 9 at the Sunrise Assisted Living Facility in Weston. She was the cherished wife for nearly 60 years of the late John D. Mahoney, 82, who passed away on June 12 at the Massachusetts General Hospital following a brief illness (see below). They were residents of Lincoln since 1970.

Born on March 25, 1938 and raised in Waterbury, Conn., Eleanor was the daughter of the late Russell and Eleanor (Reihl) Davis. She attended the University of Connecticut before marrying John and completing her bachelor’s degree in art from Wellesley College.

A passionate artist from an early age,Eleanor was devoted to educating others about her knowledge in sculpture, watercolor painting, and most of all, ceramics. Beginning in the 1970s, she taught at Rivers School in Weston, the deCordova Museum in Lincoln, the Danforth Museum School of Framingham, and Camp Nonesuch in Weston.

Jack Mahoney

John Mahoney, a retired real estate attorney, was born in Boston on February 18, 1935, the son of the late Cornelius and Elizabeth (Kane) Mahoney. He grew up in the Allston/Brighton area and was a graduate of Boston University School of Law and practiced at the firm of Goldstein, Mahoney & Levin in Boston prior to his retirement.

John was a talented athlete who qualified for the 1956 U.S. Olympic Team in speed skating. His agility allowed him to participate in barrel jumping, a difficult feat in the sport. He was the founder of the Friends of Boston University Hockey and also initiated the New England Junior Hockey League. He also represented the league for the 1980 Olympic Committee in Colorado Springs. In 1970, he built the Olympia Ice Center in Springfield, Mass. John was also a lifelong, avid golfer and a member of Wayland Country Club.

Survivors of the Mahoneys include two sons, Reihl Mahoney and his wife Sheryl of Lexington, and Squire Mahoney and his wife Pam of Douglas; their grandchildren, Jack, Alec, and Sabrina Mahoney, all of Lexington; and Eleanor’s brother, Russell Davis of Waterbury, Conn.

A celebration of Eleanor and John’s lives is planned for September with family and friends.

Eugene Rapperport

Eugene Rapperport

Eugene Rapperport died on July 12 at the age of 87. He was an MIT metallurgist who built Lincoln house designed by Lucy, his wife of 67 years. Click here for the full obituary and click here to make an entry into the guestbook.

 

News acorns

Firefly talk and walk on Sunday

Every summer, the fields of Lincoln come alive with the ethereal silent sparks of fireflies. Sara Lewis, a long-time Lincoln resident and author of Silent Sparks: The Wondrous World of Fireflies, will lead “Lights in the Night: A Firefly Talk and Walk with Sara Lewis” on Sunday, July 23 starting with a talk at 7:45 p.m. in Town Hall and a firefly walk in the Smith-Andover Field across Lincoln Road at 8:15 p.m. Dress for weather and wear sturdy shoes. Apply any insect repellent before entering the field. Please use red LED flashlights, or regular flashlights can be covered with red cellophane. The rain date for the walk is July at 8:15 p.m.

Lewis, a professor of biology at Tufts University, has given a TED talk and written about firefly conservation for CNN and Undark Magazine. Limited numbers of her book are available at the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust office and at the Lincoln Public Library. This event is co-sponsored with Lincoln’s Conservation Commission.

Holy Cow! Garden herb walk

Come on a Holy Cow! Garden herb walk on Saturday, July 29 from 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m. led by Jai Kaur (Annamaria San Antonio) in the Holy Cow! Garden at the Codman Estate in Lincoln (directions sent upon registration). Cost is $15 adults; free for kids under 12. Contact Jai Kaur at 781-738-1920 or asanajai@verizon.net to reserve your space, and mail a check to made out to Annamaria San Antonio, PO Box 266, Lincoln MA 01773. Holy Cow! Garden, which abuts Codman Community Farms is a private, nonprofit project that highlights sacred source in the mundane. Home-made herbal products will be for sale.

Show your art in the library

Want to display your art in the Lincoln Public Library? The application for displaying art in the library’s main gallery is available on the library website. The downstairs “Stay-Put” Gallery requires no application and has openings throughout 2018.

Flint’s Pond still too low for twice-weekly watering

Water levels in Flint’s Pond since 2010 (click to enlarge). The last two red X’s indicate levels in July 2016 and July 2017.

Despite the rainy spring and summer thus far, lawn watering via sprinklers is still permitted in Lincoln only once a week because Flint’s Pond has not yet rebounded to a level that would allow more water use.

Though watering is normally allowed two days a week in the summer, the Board of Water Commissioners banned all outdoor watering in August 2016 during the drought. The board relaxed it to once a week in May and maintained that restriction in June and July.

Precipitation for 2017 overall has been normal, with the first three months below normal and the second three months above. Although the Flint’s Pond’s water level has risen, it’s still markedly below where it usually is at this time of year, according to Water Department Superintendent Greg Woods.

“The water use by our customers has actually been below normal thanks to their compliance with the water restrictions. If the rainfall continues and our customers continue to conserve, we might be able to relax back to the two-day-a-week restriction next month,” he said.

The two-day-a-week schedule is the normal restriction for Lincoln from May 1 through September 30 as per the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) because Lincolnites use more than 65 gallons per person per day on average, “and we also draw more water annually from our water sources than allowed by our DEP permit,” Woods added.

Some have wondered why Flint’s Pond is still low when the nearby Cambridge Reservoir appears to be full. The reservoir filled up more quickly because it has a very large watershed to capture the precipitation and funnel it into the reservoir’s basin, Woods said. Flint’s Pond has a relatively small watershed and essentially sees a 1:1 ratio of precipitation and pond level increases, compared to about 2:1 for the Cambridge Reservoir. The Flint’s Pond dam is not overtopping or leaking and is experiencing the normal amount of seepage underneath, Woods said.

The water commissioners have open meetings on the second Wednesday of every month at 4:30 p.m. in the Water Department pump house to review the latest data and decide what (if any) water restrictions to impose. “We expect the water level to be lower in the end of the summer, so at the next meeting, we will compare the measured level to the normal level in August,” said Water Commissioner Ruth Ann Hendrickson.

See the Water Department web page for details on what types of watering ares allowed and when.

New outdoor sculptures coming to deCordova

Aaron Curry, “Homewrecker” (part of “Grove”), 2013, painted aluminum, 11 x 10 x 5 feet, courtesy Michael Werner Gallery, New York and London.

The deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum is adding several large-scale works to its 30-acre park this summer.

Aaron Curry: Grove—three colorful painted aluminum sculptures ranging from 10 feet to 18 feet tall—is being installed near the front entrance in late July. JaeHyo Lee’s 0121-1110=113035 (Lotus)—an 18-foot-tall cone-shaped sculpture made from discarded pieces of wood—will be installed on deCordova’s main lawn across from the traditional 19th-century Carriage House in late July. Both installations will be on view for two years.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to display these monumental works of art in deCordova’s Sculpture Park, as each introduces a very different element to our campus,” said Sarah Montross, associate curator at deCordova. “Aaron Curry’s trio of vibrant sculptures will add an otherworldly presence to our entrance lawn, welcoming visitors with a bold splash of color and cartoon-like appearance. JaeHyo Lee’s wooden Lotus sculpture will bring a calming, organic quality to the main lawn and create a natural conversation with the surrounding trees and landscape.”

Also this summer, Torso—a granite sculpture by Reno Pisano shown in the museum’s first sculpture exhibition in 1950—returns to deCordova’s campus.

In early September, deCordova will continue its PLATFORM series with the outdoor installation of a large-scale photograph by French artist Noémie Goudal. Earlier in May, deCordova installed Hawaii California Steel (Figure Ground), a site-specific work by Brooklyn-based artist Letha Wilson, as part of the series.

JaeHyo Lee, “0121-1110=113035 (Lotus),” 2013, chestnut, 18 x 4 x 4 feet, installation view in Union Square Park, New York, 2013, courtesy of CYNTHIA-REEVES Gallery and Union Square Partnership.

Wilson will give a studio workshop at deCordova on Thursday, July 27 from 6–9 p.m., where participants can explore the representation of place through photography, painting, and sculpture while making their own work (registration required). She will also give an artist’s talk on Friday, July 28 at noon to discuss concepts and process behind the creation of her sculpture, including innovative methods for printing photographs onto steel. Free with admission or deCordova membership.

PLATFORM is a series of one-person commissioned projects by early- and mid-career artists from New England and the world that engage with deCordova’s unique landscape. The PLATFORM series lets artists expand their practice and visitors experience new approaches to contemporary sculpture. PLATFORM 19 was generously funded in part by the Robert Lehman Foundation.

Letha Wilson, “Hawaii California Steel (Figure Ground),” 2017, UV prints on Cor-Ten steel, 110 x 76 inches, courtesy of the artist, photography by Anchor Imagery.

LLCT members join ribbon-cutting for new trail

Members of the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust (LLCT)  took part in dedicating a new portion of the 230-mile Bay Circuit Trail on Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary land on July 15.

Left to right: Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary Director Renata Pomponi; Kristen Sykes, Bay Circuit Alliance Director of Operations and Appalachian Mountain Club Director of Conservation Strategies; Mass Audubon President Gary Clayton; LLCT board member Andy Falender; LLCT board chair Meghan Lytton; and LLCT president Buzz Constable. Photo courtesy Mass Audubon.

The July 15 ribbon-cutting featured officials from Mass Audubon, the LLCT, the Bay Circuit Alliance, and the Appalachian Mountain Club.

The Bay Circuit Trail project began in 1929 as a proposal for a protected greenbelt through the Boston metropolitan area based on concepts reflected in landscape visionary Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace in Boston.

Lincoln, two other towns choose installers for Solarize program

Volunteers from Lincoln, Wayland, and Sudbury have selected SolarFlair Energy, Inc. to offer solar photovoltaic and New England Solar Hot Water for solar thermal and solar hot water options.

The move comes as part of the three towns’ participation in the state’s Solarize Mass program whereby residents can get lower pricing from an approved vendor of residential rooftop solar installations. The program helps consumers by keeping costs lower, ensuring that installations are of high quality, and offering ongoing support and troubleshooting.

Residents are encouraged to join SolarFlair and New England Solar Hot Water for an information session on Saturday, July 29 at 4 p.m. at Bemis Hall. Participants will learn more about how to determine whether their homes are suitable for solar, how they might qualify for financing and incentives, and how to sign up for a visit with the installer, and how to get a no-cost solar and home energy assessment. There will also be two other information sessions:

  • Tuesday, July 25 at 7 p.m. at the Wayland High School Auditorium (264 Old Connecticut Path, Wayland)
  • Wednesday, July 26 at 7 p.m. at the Goodnow Library in Sudbury (21 Concord Rd., Sudbury)

More than 20 installers submitted proposals to Solarize 2017 in the three towns. Proposals were reviewed by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), representatives of the towns’ energy committees and volunteers, and municipal representatives. Selection criteria included installer experience, locality, product and systems quality, equipment and installation warranties and pricing.

In addition to finding a vendor for solar photovoltaic, the three towns were also selected to initiate a pilot project, Solarize Plus, for solar hot water. Unlike solar photovoltaic, which converts direct sunlight to electricity, solar hot water transfers heat from the atmosphere directly to a hot water tank in your home. This technology can be more forgiving of shadier rooftops and/or smaller roof footprints that may not be suitable to accommodate solar photovoltaic. Currently, 0% financing is available for solar hot water through MassSave.

A February survey of Lincoln residents indicated strong interest in exploring investments in residential solar options. More on those results can be found here. To learn more about Solarize for Lincoln, Sudbury, and Wayland, visit the Solarize Mass website.

Correction

The July 14 article headlined “New pathway and sidewalk steps coming for library” incorrectly stated that the stone wall near the Library Lane entrance to the library would be removed as part of this summer’s work. The wall will remain, according to Library Director Barbara Myles. The original article has been changed to reflect this correction.