Totally agree Sent from my iPhone
> On Dec 12, 2023, at 8:35 AM, June L Matthews <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > Friends and neighbors: Following the Dec. 2 Town Meeting I wrote a piece > which I hoped would appear in the “My Turn” section of the Lincoln Squirrel. > Due to an oversight it did not, although an excerpt just appeared in an > Addendum to the collection of comments from other residents (Thank you, > Alice). FYI, I include my complete submission below. > > June Matthews > > > > My Turn: Please think further about HCA Options C and E > > While I was patiently waiting in line at Town Meeting to speak on the HCA > question in support of Option E I looked through my notes to decide what I > might try to fit into my two minutes. I never got a chance to speak, but the > item that I was going to mention first was CARS! If the allowed number of > housing units were built in the Mall area, we could have 1,000 more cars! > That number boggles my mind. It is disingenuous to think that people would > move there in order to live without a car. Sure, you wouldn’t need one to go > to the Post Office or buy groceries, or to commute by rail to > Waltham/Cambridge/Boston if that is where your job is, but what about other > destinations, e.g. the Library, the Schools (to pick up children)? Or … the > new Community Center, which our town in its infinite wisdom has decided to > build at a location accessible only by car? No, singles will have one car, > most couples will have two. In addition to congestion and traffic, which > have not been adequately studied, there will be more impact on town > infrastructure, noise and light pollution, more pavement (driveways and > parking), fewer trees, and possible impact on wildlife movement. Lincoln > Station is already the most densely populated area of Town: is it fair to > ask those residents to assume the entire burden of additional housing? Also, > it is the most diverse: if one stands on Lincoln Road at the entrance to the > Mall, one can see the Lincoln Woods apartments, Ryan Estate (62+), the Ridge > Court (“Flying Nun”) apartments, and at a slightly farther distance, the > Greenridge (where I live) and Todd Pond condominiums. Each of these > properties has its own architectural style, but somehow they all fit together > into the character and ethos of Lincoln. (And none of the buildings are > taller than the trees!) They serve a diverse range of ages and income > levels, a diversity which I believe that the town embraces. Although I > realize that only a small fraction of Lincoln’s land area is being considered > for rezoning, this is an important area – not only to those of us who live > nearby but to everyone who passes through en route to or from their > residences. > > When I moved to Lincoln 30+ years ago I did so on account of its semi-rural, > small-town nature, its open space, farmland, conservation land, and trails. > Let’s not compromise these aspects by granting carte blanche to a developer > to build by right whatever he chooses. Any fraction of Lincoln’s unique > character that we cede will be lost; we cannot, nor can future generations, > get it back. > > > > June Matthews > > 35 Greenridge Lane > > > > -- > 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.
