WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE – 10/07/25

OPEN SPACE PRESERVATION COMMISSION 

At its Thursday meeting, the Open Space Preservation Commission voted 2-1 to approve a request by a homeowner to remove two trees on abutting OSPC land that will block sunlight from the solar planeling they plan to install. The dissenting vote came from Chair Ed Harrow who was reluctant to set a precedent of tree removal from town land for private benefit. The resident expressed her willingness at a prior meeting to plant four replacement trees further down on the land in question. The trees will be removed by the year’s end.  

The commission also addressed two encroachment issues on Winter Street. The first was in regard to the stone wall at 61 Winter Street which extends 15 feet onto open space land. The commission has requested that the overhanging portion of the wall be removed, and town counsel updated that he is pursuing the matter of a removal timeline with the owner now, as the owner had been out of town for some time. The second potential encroachment issue addressed was that of 47 Winter Street. As no reply has been received from the property owner, members voted to have the property surveyed and marked. 

OSPC approves Cedar Street Extension homeowner’s tree removal request (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 10/03/25)

PLANNING BOARD 

At its Monday meeting, the Planning Board discussed the issue of unresolved road damage to Wilson Street, allegedly due to runoff from The Trails subdivision, with property owner Vin Gately. Gately reiterated his position that the damage was not entirely caused by The Trails and challenged the board’s decision to raise the subdivision’s bond amount from $75,000 to $177,000 at a February meeting. No repairs have been made to date and Gately noted at the meeting his unwillingness to completely repair the road. Following discussion, Chair Rob Benson suggested involving town counsel in working toward a resolution, which was agreed upon. 

In other business, the board unanimously approved a request by the developer of Stoney Brook Road at the Highland Park IV subdivision for a bond reduction from $400,299 to $175,800 following a contentious discussion on the matter. Additionally, the board approved a request for a special permit for downtown business district parking for a four-unit development at 3 Claflin Street, in a 7-1 vote which considered whether the parking area would be detrimental to the neighborhood and whether the design “would enhance the downtown streetscape.” Member Amna Diwan was the dissenting vote, while member Elyse Mihajloski recused herself as an abutter. Finally, the board approved unanimously a request for an approval not required (ANR) plan request by a representative for Doug DeWolfe, owner of three Lumber Street properties. 

Planning Board gets testy before The Trails owner agrees to meet with town counsel over Wilson Street damage (Article by Mary Ellen Gambon, 10/07/25)

SCHOOLS 

Superintendent’s entry survey. Superintendent Evan Bishop is seeking community input as he begins his tenure and identifies goals for his first year. An entry survey has been set up on Google Forms for this purpose. The survey will remain open until November 1.

Hopkinton Today for Friday, Oct. 3: Superintendent releases survey to gain community feedback (Hopkinton Independent, 10/03/25)