Evening edition!

Welcome back!

It’s time to start winterizing our homes. I still don’t know what that entails, but I look forwarding to learning the hard way at some point in the future.

The NOAA winter forecast tells us absolutely nothing useful. It appears the Metrowest area is a toss-up for precipitation above or below normal levels, though the expected temperatures lean slightly towards “higher than normal.” If the uncertainty is unpleasant, please know that the Patriots have less than a 1% chance of making the NFL playoffs. That’s about as certain as things can get. Isn’t certainty comforting?

Here’s what we have for you this week:

1. Park and Rec Amps Up… Everything

2. Housing Tensions Crop Up In Community Preservation Committee

3. State Representative Candidates’ Forum Is Available

4. SudburyWeekly.com News Roundup

5. Sudbury’s Second Rail Trail Is Coming Soon

Let’s get into it!

Park and Rec Amps Up… Everything

By Kevin LaHaise

The Tuesday, October 15 meeting of the Sudbury Park and Recreation Commission featured a lengthy administrative update from the Park and Recreation department. The department is facing a few challenges, but also appears to be making massive strides in programming.

For context — the commission was recently told by the Town Manager that the department will likely need to self-fund itself with revenue from programs and memberships in the years to come. It currently receives a small amount of funding from the Town’s general fund. In addition to that, the department has been navigating disruptions and future closures associated with the ongoing construction of the Fairbank Community Center, and the planned renovation of the Atkinson Pool.

All of those obstacles, as well as some staff turnover, led to some delays in launching programming in the new community center. But on Tuesday, the department walked through a litany of new and re-launched programs, events and memberships, some of which now have waiting lists.

Here’s a running summary:

• Trunk or Treat is this Saturday

  • Shaw’s made a donation for treats and there are already a bunch of vehicles registered.

• Puzzle Palooza continues to be popular and typically fields eight teams per session.

• Middle School Ski Club “went off like wildfire” according to staff, and sold out within about 20 minutes. Registrants voiced a strong preference for Wachusett Mountain over Nashoba, so that’s where they will be going.

• They have seen good enrollment in the elementary-level Lego club program, which is an early release day program. Based on the success, they will be doing it again in 2025. Some of the projects will be on display in the community center as soon as this week!

• Challenge Island, another elementary level program, gathered some strong interest as well, so that program might be expanded in the New Year.

• Enrollment in the Wild Wednesday middle school early release program far exceeded historic levels, to the point that they have more interest than seats on the Park and Recreation bus. They might consider a membership model for this program in the future, which could be piloted as early as January 2025.

• Pickleball membership is full in December. While they sold out December already, there are still spots in January and February. They think those are starting to fill up quickly. Staff referenced strong revenue from this program.

• The Reverse Engineering STEM program is coming back. They have seen early interest already and expect it to fill up based on prior popularity with kids.

• The new preschool room membership pilot, which they call the Toddler Action Zone, has gained more and more interest from parents as the department has promoted it. They’re gathering information from that pilot and may evolve the program based on what works best.

• Pickup basketball hasn’t gotten as much interest from the high schoolers as it has from middle school students, but it has been well-attended by the middle school crowd according to staff. They expect interest to pick up as we get into the winter sports season, and they recently adjusted the hours based on resident feedback.

Readers can review all programs offered by the Park and Recreation department HERE.

There is also a Fall programs brochure available HERE.

Readers can review all memberships offered by the Park and Recreation department HERE.

Registration is done on the Park and Recreation website HERE. Once you create an account, you’ll also get email updates from the department. Another easy way to keep up with the department is to follow their Facebook page HERE.

Housing Tensions Crop Up In Community Preservation Committee

By Kevin LaHaise

Each year, the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) reviews applications for projects related to housing, open space and recreation, and historical preservation. Their job is to vet the projects, then make decisions on which projects should go forward as Town Meeting warrant articles. If the articles are passed at Town Meeting, they get funding from the Community Preservation Act funds, which are a combination of a local tax surcharge, a State match, and reserves that generate interest.

On Wednesday, the CPC had one primary mission: to compile questions from committee members about this year’s applications. Town staff will send those questions to the applicants, who can provide more information before the next meeting of the CPC. The applications are available here.

The tone of the discussion was a bit different this year. Many of the questions appeared to be rooted in skepticism about the applicants, and at times harsh criticism was lobbed at projects approved in prior years. In many cases, committee members wanted a comprehensive accounting of related or unrelated projects from prior years.

Two things were apparent by the end of the meeting. First, while the CPC already had a reputation for thoroughly vetting applications, this year’s applicants better be prepared to be put through a gauntlet if they want the support of the committee.

Second, the CPC hearings may become a new front line for a growing battle over affordable and housing in Sudbury. Here’s a running summary of their discussions on the housing-related applications:

Housing Authority Allocation

Residents from the Pine Lakes neighborhood were in attendance for this meeting, as this application, if approved, would provide funding to a Sudbury Housing Authority duplex project that some neighbors oppose. However, there was no public comment put on the agenda. They were told they will have to wait until the public hearings to comment, which did not seem to sit well in the room. This was the second meeting in two weeks when Pine Lakes residents showed up to a public meeting to engage in housing discussions and missed an opportunity to comment due to committee procedure.

Some neighbors also wanted to comment during the October 8 joint meeting of the Select Board and Planning Board, but public comment was at the top of the Select Board meeting, not during the agenda items, which is their standard practice. (1:42:40) The Select Board did discuss adding time for public comment associated with the Housing Production Plan at a future meeting. While many Town committees limit public comment to a specific time in their meeting agendas, others will accept public comment throughout the meeting.

The discussion during the CPC meeting, or lack thereof, seemed to add to the frustration for Pine Lakes residents in attendance to share concerns about the duplex project. CPC member Dan Carty wanted more details on the maintenance history of the existing houses. No other specific questions were put forward by the committee, and no further discussion ensued. There was some grumbling in the background, and one attendee walked out in apparent disbelief.

Housing Trust Allocation + Housing Trust Appropriation

The Housing Trust is largely tasked with creating affordable ownership units. Both applications are for funds that would assist them in creating new units that can be converted into owner-occupied units, not rentals. They are returning funds from a prior CPA funds appropriation to study the potential for construction of units on a Nobscot Road property, and asking for those to essentially be re-appropriated so they can pursue other routes of creating new units.

Member Carty also wanted more information on how owner-occupied units are maintained, going so far to ask about the status of a specific unit. It was explained that the units are maintained by the homeowners after they buy them, though there are some Housing Trust programs available to assist qualifying residents with the costs of home maintenance.

Things turned tense when Member Carty criticized last year’s appropriation for the Nobscot study. He said the money was thrown away, and wanted a full accounting of what was spent on the study, not just from the CPA appropriation, but from any other sources available to the Housing Trust and Housing Authority.

Chair Sherrill Cline defended the merits of the study and questioned why an accounting of the project was needed.

Member Carty interrupted with a quip:

For context, about $11,000 was spent from the CPA appropriation according to Town staff, though some amount was allegedly also spent from the reserves of the Housing Authority and Housing Trust to study the property. The vast majority of the prior CPC appropriation is being returned since it was determined that construction on the Nobscot parcel was not feasible.

Member Carty demanded a full accounting of the project from Town staff. Staff said they would do their best, and noted some amount of challenge with having to go to multiple different groups to get the data. Member Carty interrupted staff:

Regional Services Housing Membership Fee

This application is typically a routine annual application. The Regional Housing Services Office (RHSO) provides a significant number of administrative functions for both the Town and the Sudbury Housing Trust. The membership fee is split between the Community Preservation funds and the Housing Trust’s own funds. As the application states:

The fees are increasing by $10,000 for one year for all members, as the leadership of the RHSO is transitioning, and this would fund the onboarding and training of a new director.

Though seemingly routine, Member Carty wanted to know if the added fees were proportional to the membership fees paid by all the members of the RHSO. He felt the added fees should be proportional to the member fees paid. He also wanted to know what exactly was involved in the leadership transition.

At that point there was a 15-second pause as Chair Sherrill Cline looked into the distance silently.

She appeared exasperated by Member Carty’s domineering approach to the meeting, while other members looked down at their computers or away from the head of the table where Cline and Carty were seated.

The Temperature Is Rising

The CPC meeting contained the latest in a series of tense housing discussions.

Residents of Pine Lakes are seeking opportunities to engage in the process, but have not yet received much of a chance to speak up in certain public meetings.

To be clear — they will get a chance at the upcoming CPC hearings. And on October 8 it certainly sounded like the Select Board wanted to create a space, potentially even outside of their usual public comment time, for the Pine Lakes residents to speak to them about the Housing Production Plan. But established committee procedures have proven less than conducive to the free-flowing public engagement that some residents would prefer.

While there may be room to improve on public engagement, increasing tension driven by the conduct of elected and appointed committee members may escalate things to the point that pent-up public engagement merely becomes fuel poured on an uncontrolled fire.

Other procedural decisions are also contributing to some of the frustration, including the inconsistent manner in which meetings and public comment are handled by various committees and boards. Sudbury Housing Authority meetings, for example, are among the very few that are in-person only, don’t have a means to join remotely, and aren’t recorded by Sudbury TV.

It’s not unusual to see acrimony swirling around housing discussions. But the question looming over Sudbury is whether the temperature will continue to rise, or if those in leadership positions can bring it down.

State Representative Candidates’ Forum Is Available

By the League of Women Voters of Sudbury

The Sudbury League of Women Voters’ Candidates’ Forum for the 13^th Middlesex District state representative seat is now airing on Sudbury TV and is available as video on demand.

Carmine Gentile, the Democratic incumbent, and Virginia Gardner, the Republican challenger, answered questions for an hour in the recorded forum.  The forum is co-sponsored by the Leagues of Wayland and Concord-Carlisle.

The forum will run on SudburyTV cable channels Comcast 22 and Verizon 30 and high-definition channels Comcast 1074 and Verizon 2130 repeatedly until the Nov. 5 election, and is available on demand at sudburytv.org. You do not have to be a cable subscriber to view the on-demand version on your computer.  The video-on-demand program is indexed so viewers can click on a specific question.

Gardner, a Wayland resident, ran as a write-in candidate for the Republican nomination for the House seat, and received enough write-in votes to qualify as a candidate in the November election.  Gentile has held the seat since 2015.  The 13^th Middlesex district includes all of Sudbury, and precincts 3 and 4 in Concord; precinct 1 in Lincoln; precincts 1 and 4 in Wayland, and, in Marlborough, precincts 1 and 2 in ward 1, precinct 2A in ward 2, and precinct 2A in ward 7.

Election information and candidate responses to a League questionnaire are available at the League’s online voters’ guide, www.Vote411.org .

The deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 5 election is Saturday, Oct. 26.  Register online at www.VoteinMa.com before midnight or at the Town Clerk’s office by 5 p.m.

In-person early voting in the Nov. 5 election begins this Saturday, Oct. 19, and runs through Nov. 1.  In-person early voting for all six Sudbury precincts is at Town Hall, 322 Concord Rd. Check here for hours.

The Town Clerk has sent mail ballots to voters who requested them.  Voters can track their mail ballots at www.TrackMyBallotMA.com and request a mail ballot at www.VoteinMA.com .  Mail ballots can be returned by U.S. postal service or placed in the ballot dropbox behind Town Hall.

Polls are open for in-person voting on Election Day, Nov. 5, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.  All six Sudbury precincts will now vote at the Fairbank Community Center, 40 Fairbank Rd.  Precincts 4 and 6 have previously voted at Town Hall.

For additional voting information, visit the Town Clerk’s website or the League’s website.

Sudbury’s Second Rail Trail Is Coming Soon

By Kevin LaHaise

In an October 11 update from Eversource regarding the installation of underground transmission lines in Sudbury and Hudson, the company provided a glimpse into the coming months. Eversource is looking at project completion soon, and expects to put the transmission lines in service very soon. Perhaps more important for Sudbury residents: Eversource announced that the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s (DCR) installation of the Mass Central Rail Trail could start as early as spring 2025.

This timeline was also discussed in an October 9 meeting of the Sudbury Rail Trails Advisory Committee. Member Glenn Pransky told the committee that things could move quickly thanks to funding from the American Rescue Plan Act:

Pransky went on to note that DCR will be looking for input from Sudbury on trail connects. He noted that a connection into Mill Village from the trail might be a larger, longer-term project, but some other connections might be able to be worked into the project.

Later in the meeting, Pransky presented a recap of a recent exploratory ride across the state along the Mass Central Rail Trail. The ride went from Northampton to Boston over the course of several days, and stopped for community events in various communities.

One of the highlights of the presentation was the discussion about the “diamond” — which is the area in Sudbury where the Mass Central Rail Trail and Bruce Freeman Rail Trail will intersect. That area has regularly been described as a major opportunity for Sudbury, as it can move trail users through Sudbury’s commercial hub in four different directions.

Pranksy presented his takeaways for Sudbury after completing the ride along the complete path of the MCRT:

So construction of the Mass Central Rail Trail can be seen on the horizon, but Sudbury is already becoming a hub of rail trail activity. The Sudbury portion of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail, which is technically not open yet, is actively used by the public on a daily basis, and is already becoming a routine recreational destination for Sudbury residents. There’s more work ahead, including the phase of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail that makes the connection to Framingham, but something is different these days:

After years, even decades, of perceived delays and false starts, things are suddenly moving faster than expected in Sudbury.

That’s welcome news for trail advocates, and it raises an important question… Can Sudbury’s Town government shift gears to make the most out of the opportunities, and mitigate some of the operational challenges of becoming a town with two rail trails?

Parting Thoughts

What do Bill Cosby, Christopher Columbus, infanticide, school vouchers, and eating cats and dogs have in common?

They all came up in the State Representative Candidates’ Forum, of course!

But how? And why?

Here’s what you need to know: the forum is about 60 minutes long, and it has a little bit of everything. The questions cover a wide range of issues, the candidates discussed the issues at length, and there’s even a lightning round of yes/no questions. And yes, there are a few of these moments, too:

That’s what we call must-see-TV here at Sudbury Weekly. SudburyTV has the forum ready for you here.

Looking beyond the election season… Thanksgiving isn’t far away at this point. That means it’s time to start thinking about that uncle pie, and the Foundation for Educators at LSRHS (FELS) is here to help. They’re running their Annual Thanksgiving Pie Sale, but they’re also celebrating 25 years of “providing grants to teachers and staff at LSRHS to pursue their individual and professional interests and passions.” You can get all the details here.

Their motto is “Inspired Teachers Inspire Students.” There’s no shortage of worthy causes these days, but there’s something uniquely resonant about that motto. The FELS mission seems equal parts urgent and timeless. Inspiration can come from so many places, but when it comes from an educator, it seems to have an enduring impact. When inspiration comes from a Lincoln-Sudbury educator, it often has an impact that extends beyond the individual student, into the broader community, and even the world.

The mission statement for the school makes this point directly: “The school culture also seeks to join academic skills to an active civic concern for the Lincoln-Sudbury community, American society, and the world beyond.”

In that context, a donation to FELS might be the easiest way to do a lot of good in the world, even with a comparatively modest donation. Or it may just be the most rewarding way to indulge in a slice of pie.

Onward!