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

Letter to the editor: appeals court hearing “a breath of fresh air”

letter

To the editor:

No matter what side you have been on during the Presidential election and thereafter, it has been and continues to be a rough ride. Each side has its talking points which are calculated to generate political support, whether they are true or not. Such is the nature of the political thicket. It has been this way since the founding of the country.

This past Tuesday evening, I listened to a different type of conversation; the oral argument in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals about the President’s Executive Order on immigration. Although many may say “how boring,” it was refreshing and instructive. It showed how facts, although stubborn things, do exist and remain critical to the proper functioning of the nation. It again demonstrated that truth is a core value of the nation. Today’s political discourse, like that of the past, has tried to minimize the importance of facts and truth in a quest for political power. However, the judicial discourse during the argument reminded us that these values are central to the proper functioning of our democracy.

Members of the executive and legislative branches of the government can say virtually anything they want to advance their agenda. However, lawyers in court have the obligation to the court to state the facts and truth as shown by the record before the court. On numerous occasions, the three judges on the appellate panel grilled both sides on what the record actually showed and the lawyers were careful to only represent what it did show.

What a breath of fresh air. No “alternative facts”; no making up the facts to score political points (e.g., the “Bowling Green Massacre”, the largest crowd to attend an Inauguration or Democratic overreaching). Instead of hyperbole and showmanship, you had reason.

I am not suggesting that the judicial system is beyond criticism. It is also political in the sense that the President appoints federal judges and it is expected that his appointments will share his judicial philosophy. This is part of our political system. This is why there are supreme battles over appointments to the Supreme Court. Some judges may be what has been described as “politicians in black robes,” but the huge majority take their judicial responsibilities extremely seriously. Different judges in a case will reach different conclusions, not because some are absolutely right and the others are absolutely wrong, but because sometimes reason exists on both sides in our constitutional democracy.

Obviously, that political thicket cannot and should not operate like a court of law. We all need to fight for what we believe. However, when political excesses create a constitutional or legal mess, it is reassuring to know that there is a branch of government where facts, truth and reason still matter. So when you have had it with all the politicians and talking heads pushing the baloney at you, come on over and have a beer with me as we listen to an appellate argument!

Sincerely,

Steven Perlmutter
90 Todd Pond Rd.

Perlmutter is a semi-retired trial and appellate lawyer who hosted a 12-part Council on Aging series of talks in 2015 about Michael Sandel’s “Justice” course at Harvard.

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.

News acorns

Library seeks Board of Trustees member

The Trustees of the Lincoln Public Library announce that there is an opening for a self-perpetuating trustee on the board, and they encourage interested Lincoln residents to apply. A summary of the trustee responsibilities is available at the library circulation desk. Under guidelines adopted for the appointment of self-perpetuating trustees, preference will be given to candidates expected and willing to serve for six years. Interested candidates are asked to apply in writing to Peter Sugar or Kathleen Nichols, c/o Lincoln Public Library, Bedford Road, Lincoln, MA 01773 by Monday, Feb. 20. For further information, call Library Director Barbara Myles at 781-259-8465.

A walk through the history of shoes

Are you curious about the footwear of years gone by? If so, explore the evolution of shoes since the reign of Queen Victoria through the 20th century on a “walk” through the history of shoes by Karen Antonowicz of the Rhode Island School of Design on Thursday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. in the Lincoln Public Library Tarbell Room. We will discover the developments that occurred in footwear for women and men of the 19th and 20th centuries, emphasizing the influences that precipitated these changes. The talk is in advance of a trip to see the Peabody-Essex Museum’s “Shoes: Pleasure and Pain” exhibit on Saturday, Feb. 25, but the talk is open to all including those who did not sign up for the trip. Sponsored by The Friends of the Lincoln Public Library .

Seventh-grader chosen for music festival

Emily Feng

Lincoln School seventh-grader Emily Feng was selected through a vigorous audition process to participate in the Massachusetts Music Educators Eastern District Junior Festival to be held at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School on March 3 and 4. The program is offered by the Massachusetts Music Educators Association – Eastern District as an enrichment opportunity that brings together the top musicians in our schools. Over 900 music students in grades 7–9 from 30 school districts auditioned on January 28; less than half were accepted. Emily will play in the first violin section in the orchestra.

 

Intersection to get two more stop signs

The intersection of Silver Hill Road (left) and Weston Road, which takes a sharp turn to the right heading south.

The Y-shaped intersection of Weston and Silver Hill Roads will go from one stop sign to a three-way stop in the spring.

After several families in the neighborhood approached the Board of Selectmen, the board had a traffic study done and also consulted with Lincoln police. Those observations concluded that a three-way stop would be safer for drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists.

Currently there is only a stop sign (which replaced a yield sign some years ago) on Silver Hill Road heading into the intersection. Traffic has increased in recent years by commuters going back and forth from Route 117 and Trapelo Road to access Route 2 and I-95.

“With the sharp turn of the road and design of the road, you almost have to go into the opposite lane of travel to make that turn” from Silver Hill Road to Weston Road northbound or vice versa, Chief of Police Kevin Kennedy said. There have been a couple of accidents at the intersection in recent years that are known to police, “although that’s not to say there couldn’t have been more accidents and near-misses,” he said.

“Given the number of vehicles and the speeds on that road, an all-way stop would be an improvement… it doesn’t feel safe right now,” said Silver Hill Road resident Audrey Kalmus.

The additional two stop signs and road stripes will be installed when the weather warms up, and there will be temporary fluorescent flags and/or an officer at the intersection to alert drivers about the new controls.

Town Meeting warrant article list published

The list of articles for the 2017 Annual Town Meeting on March 25 includes 42 articles that will ask residents for a “year” or “nay” on numerous issues that have been in the news in Lincoln over the past year or more.

Below are links to previous Lincoln Squirrel stories about some of the items. The Squirrel will also publish new stories about Town Meeting articles in the coming days and weeks as more details become available.

Wang property acquisition (article 11)

Accessory apartments (articles 12-14)

School project (articles 33 and 34)

Community center feasibility study (article 35)

Landfill solar initiative (article 36)

Agricultural bylaw amendment (article 38)

News acorns

Special teacher’s book sale on Wednesday

The Friends of the Lincoln Library will host a special Teacher’s Valentine’s Day book sale on Wednesday, Feb. 8 from 4-7 p.m. in the Bemis Hall basement. The sale features gently used books of interest to teachers, including children’s series, chapter books, early readers, non-fiction, professional books and more!

Hamilton karaoke singalong next week

On Thursday, Feb. 16, L-S will host the Hamilton Singalong, a karaoke event featuring the songs of the Broadway musical Hamilton, starting at 7 p.m. in the high school’s auditorium. The event will have two parts; middle school students will sing from 7-8:30 p.m. and high school students will sing from 8:30-10:30 p.m. Music and lyrics will be provided for every song. People may perform as individuals or groups, or just come watch and enjoy. Costumes encouraged (but no weapons, please).

The event is free, but donations are welcome; proceeds benefit the Lincoln-Sudbury Memorial School in Cambodia, which opened in 2009 after a fundraising effort by members of the L-S community. Middle school and high school students from any town or school can sign up by emailing Danielle Weisse at danielle_weisse@lsrhs.net. Non-students will be allowed to sing if there are slots available; email Weisse ahead of time and she will get back to you closer to the event date.

Library offers “blind date with a book”

The Lincoln Public Library is offering “blind date” books for loan through Valentine’s Day. The books (on display near the circulation desk) are covered in blank paper; with only the first line of the book visible. Read the first line written on the paper cover, decide if the chemistry is right, and check out the book as you normally would.

Letter to the editor: Stanley supports Safe Communities Act

letter

To the editor:

People who perpetuate crime and acts of terror have many different origins and appearances. These acts are not committed primarily by people of the Muslim faith, nor those from the immigrant community.

America is an ethnically and racially diverse country; residents come from all over the world to join our proud community. In past years, our country embraced newcomers from places like Italy, Ireland, England, Scotland and Canada. In recent years, we have welcomed Latin Americans, South Asians and Haitians, among others. And we are a better country for their presence and contributions.

The recent actions taken by the Trump administration set a damaging tone and misrepresent what our country stands for: religious freedom and embracing people from far and wide. They also send the wrong message to those who wish to come here, and communities at home that now fear for the safety of themselves and their loved ones.

We all want to be safe from people who instill fear, hatred and violence. But the President’s recent Executive Order affecting refugees and immigration make America less safe. Policies banning Muslims and directing law enforcement to ramp up the deportation of families will likely have the effect of motivating those who wish to harm us.

With regards to terror, our nation’s resources and energy should be focused on routing out terrorists at home and abroad and not blanket discrimination based on color, origin or religion. I support legislation (the Safe Communities Act) which prohibits state support for a Muslim registry and the use of state and local resources for mass deportations or deportation raids but allows continued local and state police collaboration with federal immigration agents to apprehend dangerous criminals.

We cannot allow fear to divide us.

Sincerely,

State Rep. Thomas Stanley (9th Middlesex District)

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.

Land transactions in December

  • 69 Page Rd. — Deborah Hawkins, trustee, to Narayan and Melanie Nallicheri, trustees, for $3,850,000 (December 1)
  • 63 Todd Pond Rd. — Karen Kirsten-Shaw to Alfred Hunt and Tobin Ayres Hack for $1,375,000 (December 2)
  • 61 Sandy Pond Rd. — Stacy Osur to Paul and Rebecca Blanchfield for $1,950,000 (December 5)
  • 17 Birchwood Lane — Anne Marie Healey to Lawrence and Diane Climo for $559,000 (December 5)
  • 21 Bypass Rd. — Martha Drake, trustee, to Carolyn Congee and Brian Fong-Murdock for $390,000 (December 12)
  • 65 Oxbow Rd. — John MacNeil to Gerhard and Patricia Sollner for $1,407,000 (December 12)
  • 5 Hilliard Rd. — Frank Schultz to Andrew and Anita Spieth for $1,250,000 (December 23)

Officials offer school recommendations, borrowing estimates

Saying “we believe it’s time to act on our own,” School Committee Chair Jennifer Glass outlined next steps for a town-funded school project at a multi-board meeting earlier this week.

Glass told the Board of Selectmen last month that her group recommended not applying again for state funding, but start the planning process for a school project that the town would pay for by itself. At the multiboard meeting, she explained the committee’s reasoning, while Finance Committee Vice Chair Jim Hutchinson outlined some funding and property tax scenarios.

There will be two warrant articles at Town Meeting next month—one on whether to spend a previously approved $750,000 on a town-funded school feasibility study, and another on whether to reapply for state funding—but “we see that as a fork in the road, an either/or choice,” Glass said. The increased competition for state grants and the immediate needs of the Lincoln School from both facilities and educational standpoints mean that waiting any longer is not the best option, she said.

Previous meetings and votes indicate that there is community consensus on four points:

  • The education value of a school project is a top priority
  • Residents understand that the town will have to spend a minimum of $30 million for a “responsible project”
  • There is “strong support” for a project that would cost $45 million to $60 million even without state funding
  • There is interest in planning collaboration for a school project and community center

The cost estimates were provided by Dore and Whitter in their report in late 2014. At that time, they outlined three groups of renovation and construction options and price ranges:

  • Option 1 – facilities needs only: $12–$29 million
  • Option 2 – facilities needs plus “a la carte” educational enhancements: $29–$47 million
  • Option 3 – facilities needs plus comprehensive educational enhancements: $54–$66 million

The new feasibility study process would again outline the school’s needs, the town’s educational and community vision and building options, as well as an eventual a decision on one option to put forward for a town vote. The Dore & Whittier report did some of this but did not include faculty input, nor did it address the overall site plan in terms of roadways, athletic fields, etc., Glass noted.

Borrowing costs

Although construction costs have climbed since 2014, interest rates have remained steady, Hutchinson said. The Finance Committee has consulted with bond advisors and concluded that the town can borrow up to $80 million without losing its AAA bond rating, which affects future borrowing costs. That level of borrowing would drive the town’s debt-to-operating ration from the 3-4% range up to 12-13%, he said.

To soften the tax impact, the Finance Committee recommends additional steps such as repaying the bonds over 30 years rather than 20. Also advisable is a “level debt” whereby annual payments would remain the same, though they would effectively decline as a percentage of revenue over time due to inflation, Hutchinson said. Although the town has a debt stabilization fund, spending all of it is not a good idea, because “there are always unanticipated things that happen to towns and we need to have some kind of buffer,” he added.

Another way to spread out the repayments would be to borrow for a community center and a school project separately “and put it in two lumps rather than one big lump,” Hutchinson said.

Voters at Town Meeting will be asked for a $150,000 appropriation for a feasibility study by a community center building committee that would work alongside the new school building committee. The Board of Selectmen would “mandate cooperation between the two,” Selectman Peter Braun said.

One advantage of not involving the MSBA is it frees the town from having to clearly separate design and planning for a school project and a community center, Glass noted.

Property tax impact

What does this mean for Lincoln taxpayers? Hutchinson did not have final estimates this week (the committee will present them at another multi-board meeting on March 8), but an earlier analysis that assumed a 4.6% interest rate and a more aggressive repayment schedule showed that tax bills would rise by $367 per year on a median-value home for every $10 million that the town borrowed. The median home value is $883,000, so someone with a home of that value would pay an additional $1,101 per year if the town borrowed $30 million, for example.

However, Hutchinson noted that interest rates are actually lower than the projected figure (about 3.4% right now), so the repayment cost would be lower than the example—more like $300 per $10 million borrowed, he said.

Even if the town decided on a “repair-only” direction, it would not be eligible for Massachusetts School Building Authority funding, Glass said. The MSBA has two grant programs: the core program and the “accelerated repair” program, which funds individual repair projects such as roofs and boilers. However, schools who get the second type of funding have no other major facilities or educational flaws aside from the isolated issue, and Lincoln does not meet that standard.

Other area towns have done town-funded school projects in recent years, including a new elementary school in Brookline and a replacement for the Zervas School in Newton. Lexington has done several projects, some with MSBA funding and some without. Wellesley has been turned down by the MSBA several times for a project that would consolidate three elementary schools into two and is also contemplating going it alone, Glass said.

One focus of debate is sure to be which major project to do first. The Council on Aging and the Parks and Recreation Department are advocating for a community center and have suggested that if it were built first, some of its space would be used by the school while staged school construction work was taking place.

But resident Ken Hurd disagreed. “My preference would be if the focus is really the school because this is what we need the most. We’re going to attract more people if we have the school situation resolved. A community center is nice is nice and we need it, but it’s not going to bring people to Lincoln,” he said.

“Town leadership should take a position on what the priorities should be,” said Steve Perlmutter, a member of the 2014 School Building Advisory Committee.

 

Public hearings coming up

The Zoning Board of the Appeals of the Town of Lincoln will hold a public hearing on Thursday, Feb. 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the Town Office Building to hear and to act on the following petitions under the Zoning Bylaws:

  • Nunzio Domilici, 22 Deer Run Road, for transfer and renewal of an accessory apartment special permit.
  • Holly Hedlund, 21 Morningside Lane, for extension of time on original approved special permit.

The Lincoln Historical Commission will hold a public hearing at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 7 in the Town Office Building to consider the application of Massachusetts Audubon Society to demolish the existing structure known as the “Education Building” at 208 South Great Rd.

A complete list of public notices for the town of Lincoln can be found here.