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
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