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Spring forward
Welcome back!
It was a slow news week. Just another peaceful week in Sudbury. Nothing really major to report.
Here’s what we have for you this week:
March 6, 2026 Edition
Let’s get into it!
Watch the Candidates, Meet the Candidates
NEWS
By the League of Women Voters of Sudbury
Learn more about the candidates running for town boards and school committees in the March 30 Annual Town Election.
The League of Women Voters Candidates’ Forum is now available via SudburyTV. The League is also holding a drop-in Meet the Candidates event at Goodnow Library Sunday, March 15, 2-4 p.m.
Voters can view the Candidates’ Forum on demand via the LWV Voters’ Guide or sudburytv.org. A cable subscription is not needed to view the programs on demand on a computer or smartphone.
The forum will run on SudburyTV’s cable channels, Comcast 22 and 1074 and Verizon 30 and 2130, during March. Viewers can find the SudburyTV cable broadcast schedule here.
Eight of the 11 candidates on the ballot recorded brief statements highlighting the work of the board or committee and their interest in serving on it.
Participating in this forum are Charles Russo for Select Board, Liam Vesely for Board of Assessors, Ingrid Mayyasi for Goodnow Library Trustee, Ryan Poteat for Park & Recreation Commissioner, Ellen Lederer-DeFrancesco and Julie Durgin for Sudbury School Committee, and Ravi Simon and Jason McLure for Lincoln-Sudbury Regional District School Committee.
Voters can view these statements by clicking on the candidate’s image in the Voters’ Guide, or by viewing the program via the Voters’ Guide, sudburytv.org, or cable television.
“Every year I am surprised by how much I learn from watching the candidates’ statements,” said Nell Forgacs, LWV voter service chair. “I hope that watching the program will encourage more people to get involved with their local government, and that it will inspire members of our community to join us on March 15 for Meet the Candidates. Meet the Candidates is a fantastic opportunity to meet your future elected officials face-to-face in an informal setting and to share with them your thoughts about how Sudbury should run.”
Meet the Candidates is an informal, drop-in event for candidates running for town offices and school committees. Members of the community can stop by any time and talk to the candidates. Students are encouraged to come and ask questions. Families are welcome. Light, allergy-friendly refreshments will be served.
Eight of the 11 candidates have indicated they will be available to voters at Meet the Candidates. Participating are Charles Russo for Select Board, Ingrid Mayyasi and Elizabeth Iwasaki for Goodnow Library Trustee, Susan Sama for Board of Health, Ryan Poteat for Park & Recreation Commissioner, Ellen Lederer-DeFrancesco and Julie Durgin for Sudbury School Committee, and Ravi Simon and for Lincoln-Sudbury Regional District School Committee.
The last day to register to vote in the town election is Friday, March 20. You can check your registration status and register online to vote at www.VoteInMA.com.
Find a link to the specimen ballot and answers to election and voting questions in the League’s March 2026 Election FAQs.
Inaccurate Petition Barrels Into SPS Public Comments
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
An anonymously-sponsored Change.org petition has been circulating in Sudbury and surrounding towns over the last week. The petition makes several demonstrably false claims, but garnered over 400 signatures for a “vote of no confidence” in four of the five members of the Sudbury Public Schools (SPS) School Committee. The petition appears to be an attempt to pressure members of the committee to resign using fabrications and distortions about recent events.
It’s unclear, because of how Change.org presents the information, how many Sudbury residents signed the petition. The website indicates that 91 percent of the signatures are from people who provided a Sudbury, Wayland or Maynard zip code when they “signed” the petition, but it does not state how many are verified Sudbury residents.
Several public comments at the heavily-attended March 2 meeting of the SPS school committee reiterated or alluded to some of the false claims. Below are the most egregious false assertions from the petition, followed by the actual facts and receipts.
Eversource Transmission Line Helped Avert FY27 Override
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
The Finance Committee welcomed Town Manager Andy Sheehan for a Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget hearing on the evening of March 2, and attendees learned just how a previously-anticipated FY27 override was averted.
The short answer is that new growth (new tax revenue from construction, renovation and property improvements) came in stronger than anticipated. Assistant Town Manager and Finance Director Victor Garofalo told the committee “Certain things came in, especially new growth, that prevented that [FY27] override. So again, this is the best information we have looking to the future, but things can change. The Eversource new growth number came in a lot higher than we anticipated, which then allowed us to be able to balance a budget in Fiscal Year 27 that we had [previously] projected as a deficit budget in Fiscal Year 27.”
Colon Cancer Awareness: Prevention and Early Detection Matter
Your Health with Dr. McShine
March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month, a reminder that colon cancer is one of the most common cancers in the United States, and one of the most preventable. When detected early, it is highly treatable. Screening saves lives.
Colon cancer (also known as colorectal cancer) often begins as small growths called polyps in the colon or rectum. These polyps may not cause symptoms at first, which is why screening is so important. Detecting and removing polyps early can prevent cancer from developing.
Colon Health Tips:
SPS Committee Member May Have Leaked Content Of Recent Executive Sessions
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
Sudbury Public Schools (SPS) School Committee member Nicole Burnard may have broken the confidentiality of executive session with an Open Meeting Law (OML) complaint that, if Burnard’s statements in the complaint are correct, revealed elements of committee deliberations in recent executive sessions. (Complaint embedded below)
The committee agendas have said the executive sessions were to discuss Superintendent Brad Crozier’s contract. The OML complaint contains claims specifying the sessions were discussing a “buy-out” of that contract.
A March 6, 2026, response from SPS counsel rebuffs each of the allegations of a violation in the OML complaint. The response also states that the attorney’s office conducted an investigation into one of the allegations and found no violation of the Open Meeting Law. (Counsel response embedded below)
Sudbury Police Dispatcher Injured On Navy Reserve Duty in Dubai
NEWS
By Nancy Brumback
A Sudbury police department dispatcher deployed on U.S. Navy Reserve duty was injured in an Iranian attack on a military base in Dubai Saturday.
After-School Care Changes Or Options Could Be Coming To Sudbury
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
The Sudbury Public Schools (SPS) school district has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for after-school care in the school buildings. Meanwhile, the Sudbury Park and Recreation Department is slated to present concepts for collaboration with SPS at the March 2 meeting of the school committee.
With regard to the RFP, the district is required to put the contract out to bid as the prior contract approaches the end of its term to comply with State procurement laws. That makes this a fairly routine endeavor, but the district’s existing vendor, Sudbury Extended Day (SED), is sounding an alarm that it hasn’t in the past.
Spring Anyone?
FEATURES
By John Palmieri
Winter continued for Sudbury during February with more snow and very cold conditions. Although saturday, the last day of the month, did give us a Spring tease with a high temp of 52 degrees. Finally some melting of our snowpack. Yay. In total we had 22 inches of snow. The Winter season now has delivered 61 inches of snow. That is almost as much as the previous three years combined!
The water equivalent for the month was 1.95 inches of rain bringing our year to date rainfall amount to 4.73 inches, somewhat on the dry side to start the year. And it surely was cold with 11 days/nights dipping below 10 degrees and every day/night dipping below 32 degrees. Spring anyone?
Events!
Parting Thoughts
The clocks “spring forward” an hour this weekend, which means we all have a fighting chance of restoring vitamin D levels to something respectable in the weeks ahead.
The weather is just unrelenting this winter. We’re not out of the woods yet, either. But there’s at least a little hope when there’s still daylight to savor after you wrap up work for the day. Unfortunately, we’ll be savoring the sunlight from inside our homes for a while, at least until the giant piles of snow melt into the usual frothy mixture of filth, roadkill and litter.
Onward!