By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The Lynnfield Woodlot conservation area will be formally open to the public this fall, Essex County Greenbelt Association Stewardship Director David Rimmer said during a recent Planning Board meeting.
The Planning Board recently approved the Essex County Greenbelt Association’s request to construct a six-vehicle parking lot for Lynnfield Woodlot, formerly known as Richardson Green. The Select Board unanimously voted in November 2021 to purchase the 21-acre Lynnfield Woodlot property, 1425 Main St., for $2.7 million. The Select Board also voted to assign the property to the Essex County Greenbelt Association and approved a conservation restriction for the land.
Planning and Conservation Director Emilie Cademartori said the Scenic Roads Bylaw required the Planning Board to hold a public hearing on the parking lot project. The bylaw requires Planning Board approval for any work undertaken in the public right-of-way that involves removing public shade trees and stone walls.
“Eighteen trees with sizes ranging from 6-inches to 24-inches consisting of white pine and red oak are requested to be removed,” said Cademartori. “Main Street is a designated Scenic Road. The intention of the application is to create a safe driveway to create public access for the newly acquired open space.”
The project does not involve removing stone walls.
Essex County Greenbelt Association Stewardship Director David Rimmer recalled that Lynnfield Woodlot was purchased by a $1,638,750 Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness grant that was awarded by the state as well as $200,000 from the Conservation Commission’s Conservation Fund. Essex County Greenbelt also raised $300,000 for the land purchase. The remaining $571,250 appropriated for the land purchase was from the American Rescue Plan Act.
“The town of Lynnfield holds a conservation restriction,” said Rimmer. “The conservation restriction limits the size of the parking area that we can construct. That is why we need to seek formal approval for this parking area from the town.”
Rimmer said the access road that will be leading into the parking lot will have “better sight lines,” which he said will make it easier and safer for motorists to enter and access the property.
“It’s accessible off of Main Street,” said Rimmer. “There is a little extension that will allow people to turn around if they need to. There is one designated handicap space as well. The driveway will be gravel, and there is no pavement. We don’t anticipate any runoff or stormwater issues. But we do have to remove a lot of trees to create this lot.”
Cademartori said the parking lot project will make sure people can enter and exit Lynnfield Woodlot safely.
“I can say from personal experience that the line of sight is terrifying,” said Cademartori.
Rimmer anticipates work on the parking lot project will begin later this summer.
“We hope to open the property to the public at some point in the fall,” said Rimmer. “There are trails on the property that connect to Willis Woods. It has the potential to be a gateway property for residents of Lynnfield and others to access this area. We think this is a good design and will work well.”
While Cademartori said in an interview with the Villager there is currently “no formal access” for Lynnfield Woodlot, she said people can still use the conservation area at this time.
Planning Board member Amy MacNulty inquired if the Essex County Greenbelt Association will be working to repair existing trails on the Lynnfield Woodlot property at the same time as the parking lot project.
“It will happen concurrently,” said Rimmer. “The tree work and the site work will all get contracted out. Once that gets started, the Greenbelt staff will come in and do the trail work. There will be a kiosk with a map installed there eventually. There will be a sign on the street identifying the property, the entrance and some information for visitors when they arrive.”
MacNulty encouraged Rimmer to communicate the project’s details with the contractor.
“Communication with the contractor is critical to make sure what you plan to do gets done,” said MacNulty. “That is something we are very sensitive about. We want to make sure people are safe.”
Rimmer expressed his support for MacNulty’s request.
“Because of the grading that is needed in the town right-of-way, pretty much all of the trees in that area need to be removed to create safe sight lines,” said Rimmer. “We will need to take some more trees out in the Greenbelt property, but not as many as along the frontage. The trees along the frontage are very dense.”
Planning Board Vice Chair Kate Flaws asked if a site manager will be overseeing the tree cutting.
Rimmer said yes.
“It’s probably going to be more than one day of work,” said Rimmer. “If the Planning Board wants to condition the approval by requiring someone to be on-site while the tree work is happening, we can certainly do that. We can certainly have someone on-site. We will do what is needed to make sure the work is respected.”
Flaws recalled that the 2021 Fall Town Meeting approved the Tree Preservation Bylaw. While she said the bylaw does not apply to the Lynnfield Woodlot parking lot project, Flaws inquired if the Essex County Greenbelt Association would be open to either planting new trees in other parts of town or by making a financial contribution to the town’s Tree Fund.
“If this were a residential construction project, we would be requiring mitigation for the removal of trees,” said Flaws. “It would be mitigation in spirit. It would not be tree-for-tree, but it would appease very valid concerns in town that there is a lot of tree cutting going on in different neighborhoods.”
Rimmer said the Essex County Greenbelt Association would “certainly entertain” the proposal, but he said the nonprofit organization needs “some guidance” from Cademartori and the Planning Board on how it would work. He said donating to the Tree Fund would be easier than planting trees in other parts of town.
“I would need some guidance on what would be an appropriate amount,” said Rimmer.
Cademartori also noted that the Conservation Commission approved the parking lot project.
While Patrice Lane resident Patricia Campbell said she understands why the 18 public shade trees need to be removed for the parking lot project, she encouraged the Essex County Greenbelt Association to either plant new trees in other parts of town or to make a donation to the Tree Fund.
“If the trees can’t get be there, they need to be somewhere else in Lynnfield,” said Campbell.
Campbell also expressed concerns about the number of trees that have been cut down in town as of late. She said the town “doesn’t deserve” to have the Arbor Day Foundation’s Tree City USA designation.
“We are losing a lot of our canopy, and I am very upset about it,” said Campbell. “But this place is needed to get what we wanted, which was access to the woods for people. Maybe that will heighten people’s appreciation of trees when they go walking in there.”
After the discussion, the Planning Board approved the Lynnfield Woodlot parking lot project.