Hi, There is a ZOOM meeting tomorrow evening, of which everyone in Lincoln is invited to attend. All should have received a mailer with details, as I did. I agree - this DOES seem rushed- ALL of it. It would be best to not rush this process at all. >From what I understand, we can submit more than one option to the state for approval. Why wouldn’t we want to try to do that? And in the meantime, perhaps we can become better educated -instead of making accusations and assumptions about our neighbors.
Sincerely, Margo Fisher-Martin On Tue, Nov 28, 2023 at 4:23 PM John Mendelson <johntmendel...@gmail.com> wrote: > What about the timeline? Option E was presented to the HCAWG one week ago > with the Thanksgiving holiday in between. There has been no time for > scrutiny let alone public discussion. > > How is that reasonable especially in light of incessant calls that the > working group's process and timeline was rushed? > > On Tue, Nov 28, 2023 at 4:08 PM Karla Gravis <karlagra...@gmail.com> > wrote: > >> Option E was presented in a public meeting on 11/21. You can look at the >> video of the meeting here >> <https://cloud.castus.tv/vod/lincoln/video/65649a1ec9814f00089fa36f?page=HOME> >> . >> >> The citizens group came together organically, not unlike the citizens >> group that sprung up in Newton (and displaced five incumbents in the recent >> elections). The Brookline Select Board also worked with citizen >> groups, going as far as visiting each building on Harvard St to make >> decisions on which ones to include as a group. This form of citizen >> involvement is happening in other towns. >> >> 100 residents emailed the Selects asking for an additional option to >> Options C and Ds. I would argue the “special interest” here is the >> inclusion of the RLF project into *every* single option the HCAWG has >> presented, even though many people have requested an option without it. I >> would also argue it is a special interest when RLF employees criticize a >> grassroots citizens group, without disclosing their affiliation to the RLF. >> Another “special interest” is Civico having a say in our bylaws. >> >> *Why does every single HCAWG option include the mall? *There would have >> been no need for a citizen-generated option if the HCAWG had 1) put forth >> an option without the mall and/or 2) addressed the numerous concerns (and >> mistakes) with options C and D. These concerns were brought up publicly. >> >> Let’s remember Utile created the options in private meetings. There were >> no open discussions where the HCAWG went parcel by parcel as to what was >> included or not. Utile came up with the options privately (based on some >> loose guidance but no parcel-by-parcel open discussion whatsoever) and then >> were presented to the public. Perhaps if there had been open discussions >> with Utile, we would have been quicker to catch the multiple mistakes in >> the submission before it was sent to the State. (18 extra acres of parcels, >> LW zoning at 20 units/acre, etc). Must be noted that it was the citizens' >> group who caught the mistakes. >> >> >> >> >> >>> >>> >>> ---------- Forwarded message --------- >>> From: John Mendelson <johntmendel...@gmail.com> >>> Date: Tue, Nov 28, 2023 at 15:44 >>> Subject: Re: [LincolnTalk] Lincoln Residents for Housing Alternatives >>> and HCA Choices >>> To: Lynne Smith <ly...@smith.net> >>> CC: Lincoln <lincoln@lincolntalk.org> >>> >>> >>> This strikes me as extremely hypocritical in regard to the way the >>> dialog has unfolded over the past few months. >>> >>> Why should this group receive preferential treatment in terms of the >>> process used to develop an option we are being asked to vote on? Many >>> members of the group who developed option E have spent the last few months >>> demanding transparency, calling into question the ethics of the volunteers >>> on the working group and elsewhere, destabilizing the process, and >>> generally using the public forum of Lincoln Talk as a bully pulpit to push >>> their agenda. >>> >>> I am asking for meeting and voting records in order to fully evaluate >>> the merits of and intent behind option E, just like many have asked for and >>> received for Options C and D. >>> >>> To vote for an option (E) that has not had the same level of public >>> scrutiny is a terrible idea. >>> >>> John >>> >>> On Tue, Nov 28, 2023 at 2:56 PM Lynne Smith <ly...@smith.net> wrote: >>> >>>> I am writing in response to recent comments on Lincoln Talk, one of >>>> which accused the Lincoln Residents for Housing Alternatives (LRHA) of >>>> being a “*special interest group, which has had secret meetings to >>>> develop…options with no public notifications of meetings or publication of >>>> minutes*”. >>>> >>>> This group of residents sprang up organically from individuals using >>>> Lincoln Talk, our only open-ended Town-wide communication platform. They >>>> did not have the advantage of being appointed as committee members by the >>>> Selects. Instead, they attended meetings, read distributed >>>> information, and looked up relevant Massachusetts’ law. Their ideas >>>> grew during back-and-forth discussions on Lincoln Talk. There is no open >>>> meeting law to restrict residents from talking together. To characterize >>>> these discussions as ‘secret meetings’ is offensive to me. >>>> >>>> These individuals, without a hierarchy of leaders but with similar >>>> ideas and meeting mostly on line, created a web site >>>> <https://sites.google.com/view/lincoln-hca-info/home> with fact-based >>>> information regarding the Housing Choice Act and a fifth option, now called >>>> Option E. While I have not contributed to the website, I have taken a >>>> strong interest in the analysis presented there. To my knowledge, >>>> there is no ‘special interest’ that unites the group other than basing >>>> their opinions on data and analysis and showing where that leads. >>>> >>>> And that leads me to Option E, which is entirely compliant with HCA >>>> rezoning rules. Its main difference compared to Options C and D, is that it >>>> excludes the Lincoln Mall from HCA development. It excludes the Mall >>>> because many of us, listed as supporters >>>> <https://sites.google.com/view/lincoln-hca-info/who-are-we> on the LRHA >>>> website, believe it is the most likely to be developed and we want it >>>> to be developed subject to Town approvals: we want more affordability and >>>> better control of the layout and design than a ‘by right’ developer might >>>> give us. >>>> >>>> As a 20-year member of the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust and a >>>> supporter of the RLF, I want to see the Mall filled with wonderful condos, >>>> one of which I might buy when we are ready to downsize! I do not >>>> criticize the Town staff, the RLF, and the appointed Working Group members. >>>> They have done a great job getting us to this point. But everyone has >>>> their own lens for Lincoln’s response to the housing crisis. Let’s >>>> not criticize those residents who have invested their time and volunteered >>>> their skills to create alternatives. We will all meet on December 2nd >>>> to make the best choice we know how to make for Lincoln’s future. See you >>>> there! >>>> Lynne Smith >>>> 5 Tabor Hill Road >>>> Lincoln, MA 01773 >>>> cell: 781-258-1175 >>>> ly...@smith.net >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>> 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 Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>> 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 Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >> 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 Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. > Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/ > . > Change your subscription settings at > https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. > >
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