Hi all,
In an effort to do my small part to help the meeting go faster tomorrow,
sharing my thoughts on tomorrow's topics over Lincoln Talk vs. in person.
*On the Community Center*
- I agree Parks & Rec should be at the school and that the pods are in
need of renovation or replacement
- I think there are valid arguments for locating the COA at *either*
Lincoln Station (where it would soon be walkable by hundreds more people
thanks to the HCA) or in an existing (but renovated) historic structure, of
which we have several including Bemis Hall, the Pierce House, etc.
- I would advocate for the latter, since by removing the COA from Bemis
and building anew we will have yet another underutilized historic building
to maintain or (regrettably) watch fall into disrepair
- I remain unconvinced of the benefits of co-locating the COA and Parks
& Rec, especially since the optimal location for each is different
*On the RLF and HCA*
- I have historically been a huge fan of the RLF/LLCT and its mission to
preserve Lincoln's rural character
- I am honestly very confused, however, about how RLF's support for
Option C aligns with its mission. The definition of "rural" is quite
literally "places with lower population density". Option C (which will
likely increase Lincoln's population by over 20%) is the option under
consideration that most significantly increases Lincoln's population and
therefore most significantly decreases Lincoln's rural-ness
- I understand that the RLF wants to maximize profit on their sale of
the Mall by cutting red tape, but why not at least endorse D3 which keeps
some semblance of "rural character" by Codman Farm?
*On the HCA in general*
- I think we as a town have a wide range of valid HCA options we could
consider, from outright non-compliance ("wait and see") to "build as much
as possible"
- We all have different priorities and views, which I respect
- Given this, I think there's a strong argument for choosing a
compromise option tomorrow
- I believe Option E + voting "yes" on the Mall redevelopment next
Spring is the closest we have to a compromise between those favoring
maximum change (C) vs. those planning to vote against compliance next Spring
- (To a lesser extent, I think D3 could also be considered a compromise,
since at least it doesn't develop Codman Rd)
*On the Community Center / HCA interplay*
- For those who do want to locate a Community Center at the Mall, I
encourage you to support Option E - I think it unlikely any developer
(including the RLF) would choose to forgo profit by choosing the CC as a
tenant over luxury condos without the Town making it a condition
*Closing HCA thoughts*
- There are hundreds of towns in Eastern Massachusetts with dense town
centers and vibrant shopping plazas, but very few with 80 miles of trails,
community farms, and safe roads for pedestrians. I fear that when all this
is said and done, we are going to have made a small impact on housing, but
a large and irreversible change on Lincoln
If you got this far, thanks for reading and see you tomorrow!
Greg Haines
41 Lincoln Rd
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