The Planning Board at its meeting Monday night voted unanimously to continue a hearing on a proposed family subdivision by the Capobianco family on Morse Lane to give the applicant time to consider if widening the road there would be a viable option. Attorney Timothy...
Mary Ellen Gambon
UCTC discusses CPC application for Segment 1 study, revisits Segment 6 controversy
The Upper Charles Trails Committee (UCTC) at its hour-long meeting Wednesday night discussed the group’s recent activities, including the submission of a request for funding to the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) for Segment 1 of the Upper Charles Trail. The...
Conservation Commission continues contentious hearings for Mass. Laborers, The Trails
The Conservation Commission at its meeting Tuesday night continued hearings on two cases it has been considering for several months: the Massachusetts Laborers Training Center property at 37 East Street and The Trails development. These were the two main cases under...
Permit in place, plans for 83 East Main development move forward
Plans for an open space mixed-use development (OSMUD) at the site of a historic house at 83 East Main Street are moving forward after clarification from town officials that the developer already has a permit noting that the proper infrastructure exists for water and...
COVID, budget among Board of Health topics
The Board of Health at its meeting Monday discussed how COVID-19 has become a more normalized part of existence after two years of coping with the pandemic, as well as how Hopkinton might be eligible for national recognition for how it has responded to the pandemic....
School Committee roundup: Educators decry proposed FY24 budget cuts to special education positions
The School Committee met before a packed room Thursday night to discuss proposed cuts in the upcoming special education budget, where administrators stressed that they are already stretched thin because of increases in students and the complexity of their needs....
Planning Board approves Box Mill development plan
The Planning Board at its meeting Monday night reviewed a couple of relatively unusual cases regarding subdivision plans. The first item discussed involved an approval not required (ANR) for a subdivision on Box Mill Road, off Leonard Street. An ANR allows for the...
Town leaders stress diversity, belonging, connectedness in ‘all-hands meeting’
Hopkinton’s town department heads convened on Wednesday night with elected leaders and residents to share their strategies or strengthening the functioning of local government, stressing the importance of collaborative approaches and shared goals. Town Manager Norman...
Conservation Commission continues hearings on Laborers’ Training Center due to gas line concern
The Conservation Commission at its meeting Tuesday night decided to continue the three hearings on the Massachusetts Laborers’ Training Center property at 37 East Street until more clarity could be received regarding the installation of an underground gas line. Two...
State rep candidates charge toward Election Day
Hopkinton voters will help choose a new state representative for the redrawn Middlesex 8th District on Nov. 8 in a contest between veteran political activist James Arena-DeRosa (D-Holliston) and communications industry expert Loring Barnes (R-Millis), a former Millis...
ZAC hears input from community on drafted Planning Board articles
The Zoning Advisory Committee at its virtual Monday night meeting took public comment on items people would like to see addressed in zoning policy, including three drafted articles discussed at last week's Planning Board meeting. The Planning Board’s drafted article...
Board of Health voices support for safe firearm storage initiative
The Board of Health at its meeting Monday evening unanimously voted to support the efforts of Be SMART, a public safety initiative to promote safe firearm storage and prevent accidental injuries and deaths. A team of Be SMART members spoke before the board about the...
UCTC hears concerns about feasibility study for controversial segment
Tensions rose at Wednesday night’s Upper Charles Trail Committee meeting, as some residents asked that work on the current feasibility study for Segments 5 and 6 of the campus loop trail connector be stopped and the allocated funds be returned to the state. Resident...
Conservation Commission approves 8-foot drawdown of Lake Maspenock for weed management
The Conservation Commission at its 90-minute meeting Tuesday night unanimously approved a request by the Department of Public Works for an 8-foot winter drawdown of Lake Maspenock for two weeks as a strategy to control invasive weed growth. Last month, the commission...
Planning Board reviews zoning proposals in anticipation of ZAC public input session
The Planning Board at its hour-long meeting Monday night reviewed some proposed zoning articles that will be discussed at Zoning Advisory Committee (ZAC) public input session next Monday. Principal Planner John Gelcich drafted the language for the potential changes,...
Board of Health tightens tobacco regulation policy
The Hopkinton Board of Health at its meeting Monday evening unanimously approved a change to Hopkinton’s tobacco regulation policy, calling for a three-day permit suspension for an establishment’s first violation for selling tobacco or vaping products to minors. The...
Conservation Commission supports drawdown of Lake Maspenock to manage weeds
The Conservation Commission at a brief meeting Tuesday night returned to the issue of invasive weed management at Lake Maspenock, agreeing to a winter drawdown of the lake as a “toolbox item” previously proposed by the Department of Public Works. DPW Director John...
Planning Board approves East Main Street development
The Planning Board at its meeting Monday night unanimously approved an open space mixed use development (OSMUD) at 83 East Main Street after discussing concerns that the three proposed age-restricted housing units would clash with the historic single-family house that...
Conservation Commission address issues at The Trails
The Conservation Commission at its meeting Tuesday night mainly discussed two issues with The Trails, a development off Legacy Farms Road North, including an amended notice of intent concerning drainage improvement plans for four lots and a violation or continued...
Frankland Road solar project underway as forest clearing begins
When Ann Karnofsky was walking her two collies on Frankland Road on Aug. 30, she was overcome by what she described as “a caravan of construction vehicles” heading to 71 Frankland Road, the site of a planned solar photovoltaic array and energy storage facility. “I was...