Sorry to have forgotten my name … Andy Bennett Bedford Lane
On Thu, May 4, 2023 at 12:37 PM Andy Bennett <[email protected]> wrote: > I echo Sara and Diana’s energy and sentiments. Let’s not forget about the > former Cambridge Trust venue. I am not in the know on the ownership of that > property and feasibility for considering, but the point I am making is a > support for a non-monolithic revisiting of the design and planning basis. > > On Thu, May 4, 2023 at 8:49 AM Diana Smith <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> hear, hear, Sara. >> I feel defeated by the charge ahead attitude of the CCBC. going in one >> direction was NOT the sense of the meeting. We should be exploring >> creative ideas - eg, Sara's above. >> Diana Smith >> >> On Wed, May 3, 2023 at 11:37 PM Sara Mattes <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> Sadly, the focus on a monolith is constraining creativity. >>> What if, rather than simply dismissing Linocln Station as the host for a >>> monolith, we looked for a smaller space for a long-term lease of a “drop >>> in” center- ca community space for folks to stop, sit, bring something to >>> eat form home, the Twisted Tree, Donelans, Country Pizza? >>> Have a Senior Work-Off individual be in place to maintain order. >>> People could drop in as they went to PO or wanted to have a central >>> place to meet friends and neighbors. >>> The campus is not central and does not lend itself to this form of >>> socializing. >>> A more modest vision about how to use Lincoln Station would bring more >>> traffic to our small commercial district and provide a central location for >>> community engagement. >>> This would not preclude expansion of housing in the area, only expand >>> mixed use. >>> >>> We need more collaboration and sharing of spaces across town, not >>> less…more on ideas for that at a later date. >>> >>> As to intergenerational activities, the programing and traffic >>> considerations preclude potential for this to be realized on the Hartwell >>> Campus. >>> Adult activities end as youth programs begin. >>> Facilities will offer multi-generational , not inter-generational use. >>> >>> >>> And, finally, I respectfully disagree on the sense of the amendment >>> passed at Spc. Town Meeting. >>> My read was there was a clear desire for continued use and potential >>> expansion of use of alternative spaces for programming…an expanded use of >>> spaces off campus. >>> I am curious what others heard. >>> >>> Sara >>> >>> >>> ------ >>> Sara Mattes >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> On May 3, 2023, at 9:37 PM, Krystal Wood < >>> [email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> *Survey Responses regarding the Community Center Location.* >>> >>> >>> While the motion approved at the November 2022 Special Town Meeting >>> recognized that the Community Center would be located at the Hartwell >>> Complex, in the recent CCBC survey responses and during the open microphone >>> Community Center meeting on April 4, some residents expressed their >>> continuing interest in locating the Center at Lincoln Station, or in the >>> consideration of other locations around town. There are a number of >>> issues that are worth more explanation. >>> >>> >>> *The Lincoln Station location:* >>> >>> >>> 1. The Parks and Recreation (PRD) programs are located at existing >>> space at the Hartwell complex, and will continue to be located at Hartwell, >>> so Lincoln children can easily walk to their after-school activities. >>> 2. There is no viable site at Lincoln Station for a Council on >>> Aging & Human Services (COA&HS) center. No private land owner has >>> talked to the Town about siting a center on their property. The Town owns >>> three properties: the DPW site, paved commuter parking lot and unpaved >>> commuter parking lot. Consultants in a previous study estimated the >>> cost for moving the DPW to the only viable site (Transfer Station) to be >>> about $25 million. The unpaved commuter lot is too small. The paved >>> commuter lot provides public parking for the commuter rail, and presents >>> challenges complying with MBTA requirements for appropriate parking >>> capacity at train stations. Limited parking correlates with reduced train >>> service. The MBTA and its constituency can be expected to protest a >>> reduction in public parking at any MBTA station. Building on the paved lot >>> would also eliminate the possibility of using the lot for potential >>> commercial activity or a potential housing development. (Additional >>> housing is the top priority for the revitalization efforts.) >>> 3. Any construction for a center at Lincoln Station will require >>> public funding for site preparation, parking, and a building, in addition >>> to public funding for solving PRD’s facility and office space needs in >>> Hartwell Complex. >>> 4. Locating the COA&HS center at Lincoln Station would require >>> duplication of facilities with those used by PRD in the Hartwell Complex, >>> adding significantly to the construction costs, and also the maintenance >>> and management costs. >>> 5. Trying to use other locations at Lincoln Station -- above the >>> bank, above Donelan’s, other Rural Land Foundation property etc., if >>> available, would also reduce the options for future housing. >>> >>> >>> *There are many important considerations for locating the Community >>> Center at Hartwell:* >>> >>> >>> 1. The PRD and COA&HS can co-locate as they need similar types of >>> facilities and, most importantly, can share the same spaces. Both >>> provide fitness activities, but largely at different times of the day. >>> PRD and COA&HS provide arts-and-craft activities that can again be >>> located in the same space, at different days and times etc. Use of >>> the same facilities will provide significant reduction in construction >>> costs, and provide operational efficiency gains. >>> 2. There are synergies between the School, PRD and COA&HS programs, >>> and the Hartwell location that will provide readily accessible >>> opportunities for intergenerational activities unhindered by distance and >>> transportation logistics of separate locations. >>> 3. The campus has been studied extensively to ensure that a >>> community center could be located on Ballfield Road, and it was determined >>> that with proper design, there is sufficient space for parking and >>> circulation. >>> 4. The campus location is aesthetically more pleasing than the >>> commuter lot at Lincoln Station. >>> >>> >>> *PRD and COA&HS programming beyond the Hartwell Complex* >>> >>> Currently, PRD and COA&HS programs occur at many locations around town, >>> other than the Hartwell Complex and both organizations will continue to use >>> these locations. For a full listing please see the Decentralized >>> Programming Matrix on the CCBC web site. >>> >>> >>> 1. Currently the PRD runs programs at the Lincoln School Reed and >>> Smith gyms, the School Auditorium and Learning Commons, and at Bemis Hall, >>> Pierce House, the Library, First Parish Church, and Codman Farm, amongst >>> other locations; and at town athletic facilities including Codman Pool, the >>> sport and tennis courts, playgrounds, athletic fields and parks. >>> >>> >>> 2. The COA&HS has programs at the First Parish Church, at Lincoln >>> Woods, Hartwell Complex, the Pierce House tent, The Commons In Lincoln, the >>> Ryan Estates, Minuteman Technical High School, on Lincoln’s trail network. >>> >>> >>> There is a recognized need to revitalize Lincoln Station, but at the >>> 2022 November Special Town Meeting, the democratic process resulted in a >>> clear consensus and support for the amended motion for developing options >>> for design choices and budgets for the Community Center Building at the >>> Hartwell Complex. >>> >>> >>> Thank you for taking the time to read through these clarifications, and >>> for engaging in the process to discern how we address Lincoln’s challenges >>> together. >>> >>> >>> -- >>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>> To post, send mail to [email protected]. >>> Browse the archives at >>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>> Change your subscription settings at >>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>> >>> >>> -- >>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>> To post, send mail to [email protected]. >>> Browse the archives at >>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>> Change your subscription settings at >>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>> >>> >> >> -- >> Diana Smith >> PO Box 6294 >> Lincoln MA 01773 >> Cell: 617 803 8022 >> -- >> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >> To post, send mail to [email protected]. >> Browse the archives at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >> Change your subscription settings at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >> >> -- > -Andy > *B E N N E T T* > 617-694-1930 > > > > -- -Andy *B E N N E T T* 617-694-1930
-- The LincolnTalk mailing list. To post, send mail to [email protected]. Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. Change your subscription settings at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln.
