"Adventure is just bad planning."

Welcome back!

What a week! Here’s what we have for you:

1. Non-Compliant Wastewater Treatment Plant Takes Its Toll On Cold Brook Crossing Residents

2. Should This Book Be in School?

3. 250 Years Ago: September 12, 1774

4. Events!

5. Community Center Drainage Fix Coming Soon

6. Are You Ready To Vote?

7. Select Board Goals Are Set (Sort Of)

Let’s get into it!

Non-Compliant Wastewater Treatment Plant Takes Its Toll On Cold Brook Crossing Residents

By Kevin LaHaise

According to comments made by Sudbury Health Director Vivian Zeng in August, residents of Cold Brook Crossing in north Sudbury are voicing concerns about offensive odors emitted by a non-compliant and non-functioning wastewater treatment plant. (28:00)

According to Zeng, the treatment plant has never been in compliance with Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) regulations, and the Town of Sudbury has no enforcement authority over such systems. At the time of the August 13 Board of Health meeting, Zeng informed the board that the system was being pumped manually by trucks on a daily basis, adding to the unsettling conditions on the Cold Brook Crossing property. While the board empathized with the residents, it was clear that they felt the Town could do little other than try to keep the lines of communication open with DEP.

Zeng summarized the situation:

Zeng went on to add that DEP issued a notice of non-compliance after the Town of Sudbury had forwarded resident complaints about the odors. She noted that DEP acknowledges that these systems take a few months to get running properly, but she was concerned that it has been a year and it’s still not compliant.

Sudbury Weekly contacted MA DEP and received the following information on August 26:

• “Cold Brook Crossing is a residential development served by a wastewater treatment facility (WWTF) that discharges to the ground. They are subject to a MassDEP-issued groundwater discharge permit.

• The WWTF has had multiple equipment failures and as a result has not been able to comply with some aspects of its groundwater discharge permit. MassDEP is monitoring the facility’s compliance and has issued a notice of noncompliance to address the facility’s compliance issues.

• Due to the number of equipment failures, the facility is not able to process the wastewater coming in from the residences, which is requiring the wastewater to be pumped and hauled to another location for disposal.

• While the pumping and hauling causes unpleasant odors and noise, if not pumped, wastewater would backup in the system and be released to the environment, creating a public health hazard. Pumping and hauling is the only viable option while repairs are made to the facility.

• During the month of July, the facility made repairs to the blower system and mechanical mixer systems.

• The facility is now working with Smith and Loveless, the manufacturer of the WWTF, on a full diagnostic assessment of ongoing issues at the WWTF. Following receipt of Smith and Loveless’ report, the facility will make a plan for implementing the recommended repairs.

• MassDEP continues to monitor the facility’s repairs and check in with the facility regularly to receive updates.”

Condominium residents voiced concern that these issues have been going on for so long that they fear they will be stuck dealing with them after the management transitions to the homeowners at the end of the year. We contacted PulteGroup and a representative provided the following statement on September 3:

While all parties involved are saying the right things, residents are voicing their frustration with the ongoing conditions. One resident described the conditions as “unbearable” and “just unacceptable and an awful living situation” in a message received by Sudbury Weekly. As recently as this Wednesday, September 4, residents reported that the odors continue to emanate from the facility even after recent work and system cleaning was completed.

Should This Book Be in School?

By Sudbury for Racial and Social Justice

A book discussion sponsored by Sudbury for Racial and Social Justice (S4RSJ) and Goodnow Library – Should This Book Be in School? – will dig deep into four books that have been challenged in America’s schools.

We’ll read and discuss one book each season, beginning with “Ban This Book” by Alan Gratz this fall. We will meet IN PERSON on Sunday, September 29, from 3PM - 4PM. You’ll leave with a toolkit for discussions about books.

Space is limited. For more information and to register, click here.

250 Years Ago: September 12, 1774

By Jan Hardenbergh, Sudbury Town Historian

On September 12th, 1774, Town Meeting meeting voted to gunpowder and "to purchase Six hundred Weight & 300 French Flynts or 500 English Flynts, to purchase a Chest of Arms to the Number of 30 with Bayonets to be under the Care of the Select Men, to be delivered out as there shall be Occasion"

Buying arms was not on the warrant that was posted more than three months before, on May 30th, 1774. The meeting first met on June 20th and then was adjourned three times, the first adjournment was to July 4th. It met and was adjourned again to July 18th, and then to Sept. 12th when it was dissolved.

The decision to purchase the weapons was likely spurred by The Powder Alarm [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powder_Alarm], in which many militia forces were mobilized, partially based on misinformation. On September 1st, the Redcoats had marched to Somerville to bring the powder back to Boston. A contingent then marched to Cambridge and took two cannon back to Boston. As the news spread, it was embellished to include people being killed and that war had started.

The Sudbury vote 10 days later was a significant step to prepare for the eventual conflict and those arms were used by the Sudbury militia and minute men on April 19th, 1775. More on that later! There is a long except in the Sudbury Militia from Hudsons's History of Sudbury [https://sudbury.minlib.net/Record/.b11962549] in a well reformatted and spell corrected version here. [https://www.americanhistorycentral.com/entries/lexington-and-concord-sudbury-militia/]

Throughout the four meetings, the Town worked on a response for the Sudbury Committee of Correspondence [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committees_of_correspondence], which was responsible for communicating with Boston's committee to coordinate opposition to British. See Earlier Letters from Sudbury to Boston. [https://jch.com/history/250/SCoC/] The Town also voted to build a new powder house and buy powder and arms and to ask each minister "to appoint a Contribution to Collect a Sum of Money" for Congress. Images of the meeting minutes and transcriptions are here [https://jch.com/history/250/TownMeetingJuly4th1774.html].

Events!

The Culinary Guild of New England’s Opening Meeting to Feature Curio Spice Founder Claire Cheney

Apply for a grant from the Sudbury Cultural Council!

Community Center Drainage Fix Coming Soon

By Kevin LaHaise

The bids are in, a choice has been made, and the Town is working on a final contract for a site drainage solution at the new Fairbank Community Center.

On Monday, the Permanent Building Committee discussed the bids and bidders, and voted to proceed with the low bid after allowing a lower bid to be withdrawn that did not include a price for the alternate and had other clerical deficiencies.

Water has been pooling in various areas around the new building, including along Fairbank Road, when it rains. This project would address some of those issues, and the cost came in lower than originally anticipated. The owner’s project manager made a clear recommendation to the committee and summarized the financial considerations:

They’re moving quickly to get the contract process wrapped up so the project can begin. If they’re able to complete the work soon, they could avoid winter weather and possibly dangerous icy conditions.

Are You Ready To Vote?

By The League of Women Voters of Sudbury

You can register to vote, check the status of your voter registration, or make changes to your registration on Tuesday, Sept. 17 from noon-4 p.m. in the atrium of the Goodnow Library. Volunteers from the League of Women Voters of Sudbury will be available to assist as needed and answer voting questions.

Voters who have recently moved or changed their name, wish to change their party affiliation, or who are newly naturalized citizens are encouraged to stop by to ensure that they are ready to vote in the November election. Students who pre-registered to vote when they got their learner’s permit at the

RMV will be automatically registered to vote on their 18th birthday.

The registration table is co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Sudbury and the Goodnow Library in celebration of National Voter Registration Day. Now in its twelfth year, National Voter Registration Day is a civic holiday designed to encourage eligible voters to register, update their information, and ensure that they are #VoteReady for upcoming elections.

Voters can also check their voter registration from home on the Secretary of State’s website, www.VoteInMA.com. Voters can use the website to register for the first time or to check and update their name, address, and party affiliation.

The voter registration deadline for the November presidential election is Saturday, October 26, 2024.

If you have questions about registering to vote, you can reach out to the Town Clerk’s office at 978-639-3351 or [email protected].

Answers to frequently asked questions about voting and the upcoming election are here.

If you would like the League to host a voter registration table at your next community event, please reach out via email at [email protected] or via our website at www.lwvsudbury.org.

Select Board Sets Goals (Sort Of)

By Kevin LaHaise

The Sudbury Select Board met on Thursday, September 6 to set their “S.M.A.R.T.” goals for the year. The SMART goal framework means specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound. The acronym induces the same type of nausea you experience when your employer announces that a motivational speaker will be giving a talk to your company and your attendance is mandatory.

Here’s where they netted out, in order of priority:

1. Make a plan for making plans about things the Town wants to plan

2. Make the plans according to the plan

3. Plan what plans to plan when those plans are are finalized plans.

Okay, those aren’t really their goals. (But they kind of are…aren’t they?) Here are the real goals:

1 — Develop a long-term comprehensive plan to fund and manage the operating and capital budgets.

2 — Address and support staffing needs and succession planning.

3 — Utilization/optimization of Fairbank Community Center programming.

4 — Seek membership in a vocational education district.

5 — Expand (normalize) and fund a transportation option, especially for vulnerable populations.

Those five were the result of their traditional voting system. But there was a hitch in their giddyup.

They had accidentally split their rail trails goals into two distinct goals on the list and neither made the top five. If they were combined, it would have been one of the top three priority goals based on the combined vote tally.

Chair Jennifer Roberts suggested that they combine the two and expanded the number of goals to six, which means transportation wouldn’t get bumped off the priority list. One of the rail trail goals focused on building the next phase of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail to make the connection to Framingham. The other had to do with planning for the Mass Central Rail Trail and coordinating with relevant parties like the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). Member Charlie Russo had voiced a desire to make sure there was as little lag as possible between Eversource completing its transmission line project and DCR finishing the rail trail on top of it.

The board will be refining the list and possibly updating the framing and scope of their goals at an upcoming meeting. Board members emphasized that just because something isn’t a goal, it doesn’t mean they won’t be working on it or talking about it this year. Even if something is a goal, it doesn’t appear to guarantee action either. Economic development was a top-priority goal last year, but virtually no action or discussion occurred. (The board was mired in debate over a firearms business zoning bylaw for much of 2023.) While most of the top goals are carryovers from last year, economic development fell off the priority list.

The Fairbank Community Center goal appears to be the newest goal of the bunch, and a response to complaints about access to, and utilization of, the new community center building. It’s unclear what role the Select Board has with regard to operation of the building or the programs offered by the relevant departments, but the public may learn more at the next meeting of the Select Board.

Parting Thoughts

The terms misinformation and disinformation seem to be used interchangeably these days. But the distinction between the two is important. Disinformation is information deliberately spread to manipulate people. Misinformation is disinformation that is spread without the intent to manipulate people. They are categories of something researchers call “Information Disorder.” But did you know there’s a third category of information disorder? It’s called “mal-information,” and is defined as the publishing of private information for a political or personal interest, rather than public interest. There have been examples of all three on Sudbury’s social media destinations this week.

Researchers have found that video, as a modality for disinformation, might just be more effective than text or images alone. One study concluded: “Our findings reveal that video is processed more superficially, and therefore users believe in it more readily and share it with others.”

If you are in the mood for a deep dive, here’s another good read.

It’s a presidential election year in the United States, and much of the talk about lies and disinformation will be anchored on the national stage. Recent indictments certainly captured a lot of attention at the federal level. But local government struggles just as much with information disorder.

Local issues quickly get into technicalities of State law, or municipal finance, and an array of, let’s admit it, dry topics.

If spreading accurate municipal information is somewhat boring by nature, then it leaves local governments even more vulnerable to disinformation campaigns that aren’t encumbered by any laws or ethical standards.

While it has gotten harder for local governments to spread accurate information, it has only gotten easier for individuals to spread disinformation. Those who wish to misinform locally need only manipulate a comparatively small number of people to get what they want.

One simple remedy is to call Town staff and ask them if the information you came across is factual and presented in an accurate context. The department contact information is conveniently laid out on the Town website here. They can even point you to source materials to back up the quality of their information… something you rarely find attached to social media disinformation. But the best option is to avoid consuming disinformation in the first place — it turns out we struggle to erase its influence on our thinking even after we get the correct information.

What. A. World.

Onward!