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Riveting stuff
Welcome back!
The week is coming to a beautiful conclusion with a healthy dose of sunshine and comfortable temperatures, if not a little warm at this point in the calendar year.
Speaking of calendars, Sudbury’s school districts issued a survey this morning on the school calendars. You can find that here in the event you feel like responding.
Here’s what we have for you this week:
Planning Board Takes Methodical Approach to Route 20 Corridor
Rail Trail Rides: Sudbury Brings Adaptive Cycling to the Community
Whittle Away (Part 2 of 2)
Drop-in community collage event at the Goodnow Library – Sept 27
State of the Sudbury Rental Market
SPS Committee Votes Down Expansion of Employee Enrollment
Creating & Drinking Vinegars, Cocktails, and Herbal Teas
Permanent Building Committee Reorganizes and Closes Out Major Projects
Let’s get into it!
Planning Board Takes Methodical Approach to Route 20 Corridor
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
During the September 24 meeting of the Sudbury Planning Board, the Town’s Director of Planning and Community Development, Adam Burney, walked the board through a proposed approach for implementing the recommendations made in a recent Route 20 Corridor Study.
Burney told the board that focusing on the action items associated with the current Village Business District, which includes the area around the Mill Village Plaza, are top priorities that would unlock the ability to execute on later action items and recommendations.
Burney presented a proposed punch list of actions, which are mainly zoning bylaw amendments:
Rail Trail Rides: Sudbury Brings Adaptive Cycling to the Community
EVENTS
By the Sudbury Commission On Disability
The Sudbury Commission on Disability and the Rail Trails Advisory Committee are proud to introduce a brand-new community program: Rail Trail Rides: Sudbury, a free adaptive cycling event designed for people of all ages and abilities. Thanks to the partnership of All Out Adventures and the generosity of local sponsors, residents will have the opportunity to enjoy the freedom and joy of cycling on the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail in an inclusive, welcoming setting.
The program will take place on Saturday, October 25, 2025, from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM at the Broadacres Farm Parking Lot, 62 Morse Road, Sudbury, MA. Participants can sign up for a one-hour riding slot and will be supported by trained staff throughout their experience. A variety of adaptive cycles will be available, including recumbent trikes, handcycles, and tandem bikes. Helmets will be provided to those who need them.
Whittle Away (Part 2 of 2)
FEATURES
By Rev. Eric Wolf
Exploring the intersection of sacred and secular.
I grew up in construction in the South, which offered so many opportunities to hear an abundance of colorful aphorisms. As a language nerd, I loved quips like, “even a blind squirrel gets a nut once in a while.” In Part 1: Giving COVID a Finger, I used one that’s proven consistently useful as life advice, In life, two rules will never bend: never whittle toward yourself or spit against the wind.
I observed that some life lessons are best learned early, but mostly because so much of life contains knowledge that comes from mistakes that we can only make and learn from later, we learn a fair number of painful lessons the hardest way possible. One of the most painful is the futility of getting even, which led me to end with the question, “I wonder – what could we achieve if we were willing to step forward without needing to even the score?”
OK, so we whittled toward ourselves…
In a world that values loud talking more than careful communication, it’s hard to push past the noise to make an actual connection. It’s therefore no wonder that we’re in the position we’re in now as a nation, as families, and as people. We no longer have the luxury of begging the question of how we got here. That list is far too complex and varied to come to any single answer – mainly because there isn’t any single answer.
And that’s kind of the problem, since human beings tend to over-intellectualize and obsess over finding single, simple answers.
Drop-in community collage event at the Goodnow Library – Sept 27
EVENTS
By BNA Makery
On Saturday, September 27, BNA Makery will be hosting a drop-in community collage event at the Goodnow Library to help celebrate Good(now) Neighbor Day! We’ll start the collage at the library, and then take it back to our studio to finish it before hanging it in the library.
We need your help! Come by between 10-noon on the 27th to glue on some paper, or bring something meaningful you want to contribute. A drawing or photo, a newspaper clipping…(or a photocopy…) Anything that is reasonably sized, paper or fabric, and family-friendly is welcome. Please note your contribution will not be returned.
Can’t make it to the event? There is a collection box outside the NOW Lab at the library.
With special thanks to the Sudbury Cultural Council and Massachusetts Cultural Council for their support.
State of the Sudbury Rental Market
FEATURES
By Kevin LaHaise
The town of Sudbury is known for its abundance of single-family homes, green lawns, open space, and public schools. But what if you’re not interested in buying a single-family home? What options are available to you?
Given single-family homes make up the vast majority of Sudbury’s housing stock, about 94% according to the Town of Sudbury, one might expect to see a selection of those units available for rent. As of September 25, 2025, Zillow.com and Realtor.com listed zero single-family homes available for rent in Sudbury.
In fact, Realtor.com was listing just 20 Sudbury apartments for rent, all of which were located at two properties: Avalon Sudbury in the Meadow Walk plaza on Route 20, and Cold Brook Crossing on Route 117 in North Sudbury.
The least expensive one-bedroom unit at Cold Brook Crossing was $2,690 per month and offered 802 square feet of living space. Pet rent was listed at an additional $65 per month per pet, and covered parking was advertised at an additional $175 per month.
SPS Committee Votes Down Expansion of Employee Enrollment
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
On Monday, September 22 the Sudbury Public Schools (SPS) School Committee voted on a motion to revert Policy JFABG, Enrollment of Non-Resident Employees, back to a prior version that allowed a broader group of school employees to enroll their children in SPS.
If the motion had passed, it would have undone a 2024 vote that limited which employees qualified for the benefit of sending their children to SPS by requiring that they be DESE licensed staff. Following that 2024 vote, SPS employees made public comments objecting to the policy change, arguing that it effectively excluded support staff from sending their children to SPS.
The vote to revert to the old version of the policy was tied at two in favor and two opposed, which meant the motion failed. Chair Karyn Jones and Vice Chair Jessica McCready supported a reversion to the prior version of the policy. Members Nicole Burnard and Mandy Sim opposed the motion citing concerns over potential budget impacts. Member Betsy Sues was not present for the meeting.
There was some discussion about potential work to evaluate an expansion of the enrollment benefit to Town of Sudbury employees, including employees in the Sudbury Police Department, but it was unclear if that work would be taken up in the future after the vote for a much smaller expansion to the policy failed.
Creating & Drinking Vinegars, Cocktails, and Herbal Teas
EVENTS
By the Sudbury Garden Club
Permanent Building Committee Reorganizes and Closes Out Major Projects
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
On Wednesday, September 24, the Sudbury Permanent Building Committee reorganized, appointing member Jennifer Pincus as co-chair with existing co-chair Craig Blake. Elaine Jones stepped down from the co-chair position but will continue to serve as she approaches four decades on the Permanent Building Committee.
Committee members were enthusiastic in expressing their gratitude for the long-term service rendered by Jones as both a member of the committee and a Town of Sudbury employee.
The feel-good meeting also included expressions of gratitude towards Jennifer Pincus, who announced that the Fairbank Community Center project was officially completed. Pincus served as the point-person on the project from the beginning.
Parting Thoughts
It’s that time of year when local government formally starts the budget-building process for the next fiscal year. It isn’t riveting stuff, but it’s important stuff.
One of the challenges that municipal workers, boards and committees face these days is that stakeholders are as polarized as ever… to the point that some pundits have declared Americans are living in alternate realities.
But how many realities are there?
Here’s a great example:
This week’s economic news highlighted stronger-than-expected economic growth in the second quarter, and a drop in jobless claims.
That sounds great, but what’s up in New England? According to TD Economics, the regional economy is cooling off. TD put it bluntly: “Massachusetts' economy has struggled in 2025 due to tighter financial conditions, federal funding cuts to higher education, and trade policy uncertainty.”
Meanwhile, just a few months ago WalletHub declared the Massachusetts economy the best in the nation.
Which one is it? Why can’t we find ground truth on the economy?
Hamburgers might hold the answer.
While consumer spending has apparently rebounded this year, McDonalds is warning about an emerging “two-tiered” economy in which those on the bottom are feeling enormous economic pressure while those at the top are spending away.
Upon closer inspection, recent college grads are struggling to find work, technology workers are being subjected to waves of layoffs, all while experts struggle to make sense of the “mixed signals,” because some governors are claiming their state economies are booming.
In other words: everyone is experiencing a radically different economic reality depending on where they live, the industry in which they work, where they fall on the spectrum of household income, their age, and any number of other factors. Apparently a rising tide doesn’t lift all boats.
Bringing it back to budget season here in Sudbury: how the heck does one build a budget that works for everyone, when “everyone” is experiencing a different economic reality?
One thing is for sure: this isn’t your typical budget season. The post-Covid boom is decidedly over, inflation remains elevated, home prices are softening, some folks are experiencing an economic boom, and others a recession. Decision makers will have to factor all of that into budgets that march the community into an uncertain future from an uneven present.
Maybe budget season is riveting after all?
Onward!