In a March 2 letter to the editor about proposed zoning changes in the Lincoln Station area, letter author Richard Rundell’s name was inadvertently omitted. The article has now been corrected.
Letter to the editor: Marshall seeks voter support
To the editor:
In 2009, I campaigned for the Lincoln-Sudbury School Committee with the phrase “March 30 Matters.” Six years later, it still does.
I have been honored to serve the families in Lincoln, Sudbury and Boston and appreciate the support and feedback constituents have given to me. Lincoln-Sudbury remains a strong asset to our towns; the opportunities afforded our students are broad and challenging. I, along with my LSSC colleagues, hope and strive to encourage our towns to know our high school and to support our students, the quality of their education, and the necessary and appropriate services to ensure student success.
The work of educating the whole child never ends. Educators at L-S and the School Committee can always do more. We continue to educate ourselves, seek information, implement change, and educate those who support our institution as to how and why we choose certain paths. Given the finite resources we are provided by Lincoln, Sudbury and the state to fund education at L-S, we need to continue to explain the choices we make in each year’s educational program.
Nancy Marshall
As a committee, we draw on different areas of expertise and broad personal and political backgrounds. The composition of our committee ensures we have healthy conversations and that we hear and understand each other before voting. We can agree to disagree, with respect for each other’s contributions to our discussions.
We have strengthened our relationships with both towns, increased budget transparency, and worked with both towns to plan for capital needs with our now 10-year old building. We have a strong administration in place and a new teacher evaluation process underway, the result of a collaborative conversation with our faculty and administration. We completed a lengthy collective bargaining process two years ago with our Teachers’ Association that contributed critically to our wherewithal to avoid substantial layoffs in a time of significant increases in enrollment. With Mother Nature’s cooperation, we are moving forward in our construction of a solar parking canopy that holds promise as a model for other educational institutions, increasing our clean energy reliance while reducing our overall utility expense.
Teaching, learning and our students’ wherewithal to grow and become strong self-advocates, scholars, leaders, athletes, and positive contributors to a bigger world are still the core of why I am committed to continuing for another term on the School Committee.
I would be grateful for your vote on Monday, March 30.
Nancy Marshall
Beaver Pond Road, Lincoln
Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.
Letter to the editor: “surprised” at First Parish remarks
To the editor:
I, like many other Lincoln residents, was surprised by the harsh quotes in last week’s article about First Parish Church’s ongoing interactions with the Planning Board. As someone who has no opinion on the reasonableness of the church’s proposed plans for expansion, I can only say that it was painful to read so many mean-spirited remarks about the members of a key board in town who work tirelessly to do the tough job of regulating development that citizens have elected them to do.
Everyone well knows that (volunteer) Planning Board members each put in hundreds of hours per year to address the matters that come before them. Like those who serve on our School Committee or our Selectmen, the residents who serve on town boards learn quickly that it is impossible to please every citizen all the time. Polite disagreement is perfectly fair; thinly veiled insults are not.
I intend to support Bob Domnitz who is running for reelection to the Planning Board. Bob has served with distinction for twelve years, bringing his legal and engineering training to bear on every matter. We are fortunate to have someone with Bob’s skill set and sensitivity serving on our Planning Board. He (along with the entire Planning Board) has promised to remain focused on protecting the rural character and values of Lincoln. This is what Lincoln asked him to do when he was first elected in 2003 and this is what he has faithfully done.
Sincerely,
Maria O’Brien Hylton
5 Oakdale Lane
Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.
Letter to the editor: Proposed changes to Lincoln Station zoning
To the editor:
At this year’s Town Meeting, the Planning Board is proposing for the town’s consideration two zoning amendments to further the goals of the 2014 Lincoln Station Planning Study. These will be found under Articles 37 and 38 of the Town Meeting warrant. Together these amendments are intended to promote private sector development in the Lincoln Station area. No public-sector investment is proposed at this time.
There are two distinct commercial districts at Lincoln Station: The B1 Retail Business district, located along Lincoln Road immediately north of the railroad tracks; and the B2 Service Business district located on Lewis Street immediately south of the railroad tracks. The B2 district presently excludes some B1 retail uses that we believe would be appropriate on Lewis Street. These include retail stores, banks, and retail service establishments such as barber shops, beauty shops, laundry and dry-cleaning pickup agencies, shoe repair, etc.
To facilitate retail or mixed-use development, the first amendment, Article 37, expands the uses allowed in the B2 district to include all the retail uses presently allowed in the B1 district. Uses currently allowed in the B2 district will continue to be allowed.
In addition, after studying parking requirements in nearby and similar communities, we propose to relax our parking requirement to conform more closely to current norms. The second amendment, Article 38, will reduce required parking from 1 space per 140 square feet of retail space to 1 space per 250 square feet. The proposed amendment does not alter the flexibility in the Zoning Bylaw to adjust this requirement in specific cases if appropriate.
The increased flexibility offered by these two amendments is intended to encourage business owners to explore new opportunities and to enhance the economic sustainability of our town commercial center.
Sincerely,
Richard Rundell
Chair, Lincoln Planning Board
Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.
Letter to the editor: Flint responds on First Parish
(Editor’s note: In her letter, Margaret Flint refers to a February 24 article in the Lincoln Squirrel that incorrectly stated that the First Parish Church has been trying for 12 years to win formal approval from town boards to expand the Stearns Room, when in fact it has been doing so only since 2012. The earlier article has been updated to reflect this correction.)
To the editor:
I would like to clear up a few misconceptions regarding the First Parish Building Committee’s application for a building permit to upgrade the Stearns Room. In 2001, my family donated land to the church in good faith and with the understanding that there would be a modest addition to the Stearns Room to improve handicapped access and to improve circulation. After many years of input from parishioners and subsequent design changes, the Building Committee finally approached town boards in 2012 with their proposed plan. This was just two and a half years ago, not 14 as was reported.
The Stearns Room renovation has changed from its original intent to become quite a large project that now includes, among other things, a meeting room and a gallery to display a history of the church. I have been dismayed by the change in scale of the project, which I feel diminishes the prominence of the lovely, simple sanctuary. I believe strongly that my husband and father-in-law would feel the same way. In fact, I believe the church has bitten the hand that fed them the land in their disregard for several requests dating back many months, beyond the square footage, to the planned new Stearns Room: the amount of glass, the height of the roof, the metal roof, and the door leading nowhere and which bumps out the southern profile of the building.
Town boards have been generous to the church in granting exemptions for the Stearns Room. The February 24 article stated that “…the church has argued that, given the constraints of the property, it cannot fulfill the goals of a Stearns Room expansion without the exemptions.” To that I respond, perhaps the goals of the Stearns Room are too grand, given the constraints of the property and its place in the historic town center.
The article also quotes a member of the Building Committee as follows: “…it is not our intent to simply build real estate, but to create an experience that is spiritually uplifting and satisfying to the soul as well as true to the values of Lincoln and an entire spiritual community.” It is my belief that taking into account the concerns of neighbors and trying to reach compromise is what most people would consider being true to the values of Lincoln, especially in light of this building’s place in the Historic District.
Sincerely,
Margaret Flint
Lexington Road
Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.
Letter to the editor: reelect Nancy Marshall
To the editor:
It is of the utmost importance that Nancy Marshall be reelected to the Lincoln-Sudbury School Committee. I have known and worked with Nancy for more years than I like to remember and have always found her to be sensible, practical, and financially responsible. In addition and maybe more important, she thinks first of the students and the world into which they will be going. She thinks ahead and endeavors to find ways to provide them with the training and skills they will need and ways in which the school system can provide those skills.
Please, make sure to vote and vote to reelect Nancy Marshall.
Note: This letter is being written by me as a private citizen and does not have an endorsement in any way with the Lincoln School Committee, of which I am a member.
Sincerely,
Al Schmertzler
142 Chestnut Circle
Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.
News acorns – 2/28/15
Codman Community Farms to hold CSA presentation at annual meeting
Codman Community Farms’ annual meeting, which is open to the public, will be held on Thursday, March 12 at the Pierce House from 6:30-8 p.m. Meet the newest board members for CCF and enjoy chili made with Codman Farm-raised grass-fed beef, beverages, coffee and desserts. The meeting will begin with election by CCF members of new board members Brendan Coughlin, John Mendelson, Dana (DJ) Mitchell and George Travis, followed by a panel presentation at 7 p.m. on “Community-Supported Agriculture and Locally Grown Food.” The panel will include directors, farmers and CSA coordinators from local farms in Lincoln and surrounding towns, including Ed Barker, executive director of Land’s Sake in Weston; Eric Robichaud, head farmer at CCF; and Ari Kurtz, owner and farmer of Lindentree Farm in Lincoln. The panel will discuss the latest trends in the growing farm-to-table movement and answer questions from the audience.
To find out more about Codman Farm’s meat CSA (which runs through June) or discuss a prorated share. visit www.codmanfarm.org or call 781-259-0456.
Multi-board meeting to discuss Town Meeting questions on school project
To learn more about the Town Meeting warrant articles relating to a school building project and the context in which they will be considered, the public is invited to attend a multi-board meeting/public forum on Tuesday, March 17 at 7 p.m. in the Reed Gym. For more information, see this letter to the editor from School Committee chair Jennifer Glass.
State senators do Commonwealth tour on Monday
Letter to the editor: school building warrant articles
(Editor’s note: click here for the most recent news story about the school building project, or use the search box in the right-hand column of the page to find older stories.)
To the editor:
At the March 28 Annual Town Meeting, the Lincoln School Committee will ask the community to consider three warrant articles related to a Lincoln School building project. The School Building Advisory Committee (SBAC), which was reconstituted by a vote at last year’s Town Meeting, has worked over the past 12 months to develop a wide variety of project concepts that range from repair projects at one end, to comprehensive renovation projects (repairs + systems upgrades + educational enhancements) at the other. For detailed information, the SBAC’s final report documents are here, and hard copies are available in the Lincoln Public Library and the superintendent’s office.
[Read more…] about Letter to the editor: school building warrant articles
Gearticks defend state title on Saturday
Come watch the Lincoln Gearticks robotics team defend their state title at the State Competition on Saturday, Feb. 28 at Natick High School. There will be matches running throughout the day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., so there are lots of opportunities to see cool robots from through out the Commonwealth as well as to cheer on the Gearticks.
The Lincoln Gearticks FTC team is made up of a combination of high school and middle school students ranging from age 13-18 based out of Lincoln. They participate in FTC (FIRST Tech Challenge), a robotics competition that requires designing, building and programming a robot with metals, motors, sensors and a remote-control receiver. The ultimate goal of the FIRST program is to educate the leaders of tomorrow in the engineering process as well as to teach students to innovate and solve both small and global problems.
In 2013-14, the Gearticks earned the Massachusetts State Inspire Award and advanced to the world championships in St. Louis, where they received a Judges Award for their knowledge and creative use of materials. The team hopes to qualify for the Super Regional Tournament by being one of the six best teams at the state championship on Saturday.
Public hearing next week on Community Preservation funding
The Community Preservation Committee (CPC) will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, March 3 at 7 p.m. in the second-floor hearing room in the Town Office Building to discuss proposals that have been submitted this year and to identify those that will be recommended for approval at Town Meeting on March 28.
This year, the CPC received 12 proposals, of which eight are still under consideration. The total of requested funding is $1,222,075. The proposals in order of amount are: [Read more…] about Public hearing next week on Community Preservation funding