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LEGAL NOTICE — ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS The Zoning Board of the Appeals of the Town of Lincoln will hold a virtual online public hearing Thursday, April 2, 2026, at 7:00 P.M to hear and to act on the following petitions under the Zoning Bylaws: New:
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Note that legal notices often must be posted twice by law. For previous legal notices and details on how to submit a legal notice to the Lincoln Squirrel, click here.
All are welcome to services at St.-Anne’s-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church during Holy Week:
Palm Sunday, March 29
Maundy Thursday, April 2
Good Friday, April 3
Holy Saturday, April 4
Easter Sunday, April 5
Early voting in person for the annual town election on Monday, March 30 is now available at Town Hall and will continue Monday through Thursday from 10:00am–3:00pm each weekday. The last day to apply for a vote by mail ballot is Monday, March 23. Click here for a sample ballot.
The Sudbury-Wayland-Lincoln Domestic Violence Roundtable (DVR) will host “Speaking Out for Good,” an interactive community education event to engage in dialogue around our part in reducing domestic violence and how it impacts everyone. The event will take place on Tuesday, March 31 at 7:00pm in the Goodnow Library (21 Concord Road, Sudbury).
On Wednesday, April 15 from 7–8:15pm, the DVR’s White Ribbon Group (part of a national movement of men and boys working to end violence against women and girls, promoting gender equity and healthy relationships) will host “Recognizing and Responding to Teen Dating Violence.” on Zoom. Designed for parents/guardians and people in youth-facing roles, this workshop will focus on identifying signs of abuse, and building skills on supporting teens who are experiencing unhealthy or abusive relationships. Registration required. For more information, visit www.domesticviolenceroundtable.org or email infodvrt@gmail.com.
The Lincoln Town Democratic Committee will host a town hall-style meeting called “Immigration Policy and Our Community” on Saturday, April 11 at 9:30am. The meeting will focus on immigrant rights and local ICE activity and will discuss responses (both existing and needed) to current federal immigration policies. Organizers hope to build a constituency for immigrant justice, awaken consciousness about Hanscom flights deporting immigrants, and demonstrate the seriousness with which the co-sponsors are addressing ICE, the policies governing it, and its activities.
A library Comic-Con with events for all ages will take place on Saturday, April 11 from 11am–4pm featuring Star Wars characters in full outfits, zine making with a published author, and an interactive improv Dungeons & Dragons adventure. Learn all about costuming with an expert in a Cosplay 101 chat, paint your own mini, learn to play Magic: The Gathering or D&D in short drop-in sessions and more. Feel free to bring a lunch for a picnic on the lawn or indoors if weather ins bad.
Several town and school officials commented on the March 16 Lincoln Squirrel article headlined “Residents demand more oversight of Hanscom funding,” specifically:
The article has been updated to reflect these changes. A more detailed response from one or more of those officials will be published as a “My Turn” piece in a day or two.
| TOWN OF LINCOLN PLANNING BOARD NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR SIGN PERMIT The Lincoln Planning Board will hold a public hearing at 7:01 PM on Tuesday, March 24, 2026 via hybrid meeting to review an application for a Sign Permit pursuant to Section 16.5 of the Zoning Bylaw. The applicant, Michelle Custead, proposes adding one building-mounted sign and one ground-mounted sign for Ally Specialty Veterinary Center at 16 Mill Street, Parcel 115-17-0. The application is available for review by e-mailing Jennifer Parker at parkerj@lincolnma.gov. The agenda with the Zoom information and meeting location will be posted to the town website at lincolntown.org/Calendar.aspx at least 48 hours prior to the hearing. This meeting will be converted to a fully remote meeting if the weather so dictates and appropriate notice will be provided. Anyone wishing to be heard may be present at the designated time and place, written comments will also be accepted. Lynn DeLisi and Gary Taylor, Co-Chairs |
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Note that legal notices often must be posted twice by law. For previous legal notices and details on how to submit a legal notice to the Lincoln Squirrel, click here.
Editor’s note: BSL/BN is the prior holder of the on-premises liquor license at The Commons in Lincoln. The dissolution will have no impact on the current liquor license holder at The Commons, nor any impact on The Commons.
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ORDER OF NOTICE WHEREAS a civil action has been commenced by BSL/BN Commons Licensee Inc. (“BSL/BN”), seeking a petition for dissolution, pursuant to G.L. c. 180, §11. Any person who has a claim against BSL/BN may present themselves to the Middlesex Superior Court, 200 Tradecenter Dr. Woburn, MA on April 21, 2026 in Courtroom 720 at 2:00 p.m. and address the Court. We COMMAND YOU if you intend to make any defense, that on April 21or within such further time as the law allows you, to cause your written pleading to be filed in the office of the Clerk of Court named above, in said Commonwealth, and further that you defend against said action according to law if you intend any defense, and that you do and receive what the Court shall order and adjudge herein. If you do not, said action may be adjudged and orders entered in your absence. It is ORDERED that notice of this action be given by publishing, once a week for three successive weeks, the last publication to be at least 20 days before said return date, in the Lincoln Squirrel. |
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Note that legal notices often must be posted twice by law. For previous legal notices and details on how to submit a legal notice to the Lincoln Squirrel, click here.
(Editor’s note: This article has been updated after conversations with several town and school officials on March 17. Changes are indicated with strikethrough and red text. A more detailed response in the form of a “My Turn” piece from one or more of those officials will be forthcoming in a day or two.)
Dozens of residents speaking by Zoom at the March 11 Finance Committee meeting demanded greater oversight of education spending after about $2 million was mistakenly allocated from Lincoln town funds for Hanscom School benefits and pensions from FY2021–2025.
The error inaccurate allocation was first brought to light in 2022 by resident David Cuetos. The School Committee performed an audit in 2024; also that year, a working group including Cuetos was formed. aided by a consultant. Since then, a revised allocation approach was adopted and about $560,000 has been returned, but he and others have been trying to get the town to recover the other $1.5 million.
Cuetos published his detailed report on the matter in a March 3 “My Turn” piece in the Lincoln Squirrel. FinCom chair Paul Blanchfield posted his own piece on the issue on March 9.
“Can you explain why it was OK for residents to lose control of that money? We didn’t get to vote on it or a say about what it goes towards,” Sarah Postlethwait said. “Hanscom needs to reduce their costs so they can save up for these [unfunded] liabilities. Why is this considered acceptable?”
Blanchfield said that the School Committee and not the FinCom has sole responsibility about how education funding in Lincoln is spent or saved. “In the vast majority of cases in town, I would say we have a direct democracy, but this is a little more representative. We elect School Committee members every year,” he said.
“We didn’t vote on their having the $2 million in their pocket,” Postlethwait said.
“I’m not going to disagree with the sentiment of what you’re saying,” Blanchfield replied.
“It’s a gray area,” said FinCom member Greg Haines. “Technically [the School Committee’s] prerogative, but the Finance Committee could make a recommendation.”
“It’s a mistake to transfer money from the general fund to pay for Hanscom expenses,” said resident Sarah Liepert. “They should return it to where it’s supposed to be. I can’t understand any other answer than that.”
However, Committee Chair Matina Madrick later made it clear in a conversation with the Lincoln Squirrel that the School Committee does not have any authority to spend from the town’s general fund and never has (only from the Lincoln and Hanscom school funds), so it’s solely a question of what allocation of costs should be made to the Hanscom contract.
The FinCom said they would recommend that the School Committee institute a formal reserve policy. The Hanscom issue will be discussed at the latter committee’s March 19 meeting.
“I actually think the School Committee does not have the prerogative to use that money,” Cuetos said, adding that he would consult town counsel about the question. He suggested that there should be a vote on the issue at Town Meeting rather than the School Committee.
“We need as a town to reevaluate how Hanscom funds are handled,” said resident Karla Gravis, suggesting a multi-board approach rather than the School Committee having sole oversight.
“This is really complicated,” Blanchfield said, adding that Lincoln is one of only three school districts in the country that contracts with the Department of Defense to educate children of active service members living in town.
By Harry Kyros
(Editor’s note: Kyros was the owner of Country Pizza, which shut its doors in the Doherty’s Garage building after 29 years in Lincoln.)
I want to thank the community of Lincoln for its support these past 29 years. It was a pleasure and a privilege for a small businessman to be welcomed into your homes through my simple but loving pizza, subs, salads, and calzones. I can only wish you all good health and happiness. I am now energized by your support as I move forward in life. Though my time has come to an end, the shop’s story in Lincoln will continue on.
God bless,
Harry Kyros
“My Turn” is a forum for readers to offer their letters to the editor or views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnians. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.
Officials have decided to pass over the Town Meeting agenda items on funding a new HVAC system for the library after learning that the projected tax incentives were too optimistic.
Warrant articles 7 and 8 would have asked voters to approve a $5.4 million project to install for a ground-source heat pump system or, failing that, $330,000 for a conventional boiler for the library to replace the library’s aging gas-fired boiler and air conditioning system. After a $1 million grant and $1.93 million in tax incentives, the cost to the town was pegged at about $2.47 million. This would not have resulted in a tax increase; the amount was to be bonded with the debt paid from future Community Preservation Act funds.
In summer 2025, the Green Energy Committee was awarded a three-year MassSave Energy Manager Grant, which was used to hire Power Options, Inc. as the town energy manager. The firm targeted the library decarbonization study as the most immediate need and brought in Energy Systems Group (ESG) to perform a more detailed study of library decarbonization strategies and develop 2-year life-cycle cost estimates, according to a Jan. 8 memo.
But ESG found that the expected tax credits were “best case scenario… it changed the dynamic. $1.9 million was not the number we felt comfortable with,” Assistant Town Administrator Dan Pereira told the Finance Committee on March 11. The group working on the project “made a recommendation to pause and allow us more time to work on the tax incentive side and get a better second opinion on costs.”
The group expects to present a revised spending proposal to voters at a Special Town Meeting in the fall. In the meantime, tax consulting firms feel that the incentives now on the table are “stable” and will still be available later this year.
Potential capital projects for Lincoln (click image to enlarge).
The FinCom discussed what to do with the unexpected drop in expected spending for FY27. Several members suggest “giving back” some or all of the money in tax relief to residents. In February, the FinCom had recommended a tax increase of 3.5% for the median household in FY27, inclusive of the library HVAC program. The committee is now recommending using an additional $1.3 million ($2.3 million total) to offset debt service to result in a recommendation of a 0.0% increase in FY27 taxes for the median household, FinCom Chair Paul Blanchfield said.
Aside from the library, major capital costs expected in the new few years include $5.32 million in FY28 (the largest being $2 million for Ballfield Road restoration) and about $2 million in FY2029–30, with the next big expenditure coming in FY31 for a comprehensive road project currently estimated at $12 million. Farther in the future: a rebuild of the DPW site on Lewis Street, and land acquisition to expand the Lincoln Cemetery.
After much debate about whether a zoning bylaw can mandate behavior (specifically, requiring people to turn off outdoor lights after 10:00pm), the Dark Skies Subcommittee of the Planning Board finalized a draft of a bylaw amendment that would put more controls on outdoor lighting for new and substantially renovated buildings.
The board debated the matter at its March 10 meeting but postponed a vote on whether to endorse the measure until its next meeting on March 24. Residents will vote on the issue at Town Meeting on March 29.
The proposal is essentially identical to the March 4 version outlined in a March 8 Lincoln Squirrel article (“Dark Skies group tries again for limits on new outdoor lighting”) except for two added definitions and a wording change to make it clear that the requirement to turn off outside lights after 10:00pm applies only to lights at new or substantially renovated homes and not to new or replacement fixtures on existing homes.
The former condition would apply when exterior lighting after 10:00pm is not associated with an “active use,” meaning when lighting is required for ongoing or expected activity such as a planned arrival to a residence, unless otherwise approved by the Planning Board through site plan review or special permit.
The earlier time restriction would have applied to existing homes as well — something that Planning Board Co-chair Lynn DeLisi said she had a “philosophical objection” to. “I just don’t think this belongs in a zoning bylaw,” she said. However, the issue may come up again if the subcommittee proposes a future amendment to the town’s general bylaw, which does include behavior-based restrictions on things like use of gas-powered leaf blowers and noise in general.
Sherry Haydock, co-chair of the Dark Skies Subcommittee, said that the complaint they heard most often was “light trespass,” or bright lights shining onto someone’s property from a neighbor’s house.
“All these complaints are not going to be solved by this bylaw,” since the new rules would not apply to existing lighting, DeLisi remarked.
“That is true,” responded Haydock, acknowledging that “we can’t change those lights but we hope to change behavior through educational materials, public forums, mailings, and friendly letters” to owners of homes who are the subject of neighbor complaints. The caller from the subcommittee would explain the environmental harm done by excessively bright, misdirected, or all-night lighting. The hope is that those residents will voluntarily change to Dark Skies-compliant fixtures or at least install motion detectors or timers.
Some of that educational material is now available via the Dark Skies survey, which includes illustrations of bad lighting practices, lightbulb color temperatures, etc., and the group’s Jan. 12 Select Board presentation.
Take the educational Dark Skies surveyIn support of its zoning bylaw amendment that will come before voters at Town Meeting on March 28, the Dark Skies Subcommittee of Lincoln’s Planning Board has posted a survey to explore the level of understanding that residents have regarding Lincoln’s Dark Skies Initiatives and where there may be gaps in knowledge. Each section of the survey is brief and designed to assist in the development of educational materials which will be provided to the community for future planning.
The Town Meeting Study Committee will host two public forums on Monday, March 16 to present its recommendations to the Select Board and take questions and comments. The report will also be presented to Town Meeting on March 28. The discussions will take place at 8:15am in the Donaldson Room at Town Offices and online that evening at a Zoom link to be posted at the TMSC web page.
Lincoln photographer Corey Flint is hosting a portrait fundraiser for SVdP of Lincoln and Weston’s food pantry on Saturday, March 21 from 2:00–5:00pm at the Pierce House. In just five minutes, Corey will create a portrait for up to four people (sorry, no pets). The suggested donation is $90, with 100% of that going to help our neighbors in need. You can also click here to sponsor a portrait session for a family served by the food pantry (put “portrait donation” in the notes). Spots are limited; click here to book.
On Thursday, March 26 from 6:00–8:00pm, the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum will host the 2026 Paul J. Cronin Memorial Lecture, featuring the three artists behind the original commissions for “Art & the Landscape: The Land Tells Our Stories,” opening across multiple Trustees properties in June 2026. This special program introduces the artists and the distinct landscapes that will host their site-responsive works, offering an early look into how each project reflects personal histories, ecological narratives, and place-based storytelling. Together, these artists ask a powerful question at the heart of this year’s lecture: Can art create an ecology? This panel is free and open to the public. Click here to register.