By Carole LaMondGateHouse News Service
Posted May 19, 2010 @ 05:37 PM
WAYLAND —Despite what one town official described as “a masterful job” by petitioners who sought to preserve 7.3 acres known as Dudley Woods from development, Article 15 failed to garner a two-thirds majority at Town Meeting on Monday night.
Article 15 asked voters to authorize the transfer of Dudley Woods from the Board of Selectmen and Board of Public Works to the Conservation Commission and Wastewater Management District Commission to preserve the parcel of land near Dudley Pond for conservation and septic uses.
The article failed with 374 in favor and 218 opposed. Thomas Klem and Jacqueline Ducharme spoke in favor of the article.
“The parcels described in this article are already town-owned property so passage of Article 15 is an opportunity for Wayland to add to its conservation space at no cost to the town,” said Klem.
Susan Weinsten, a commissioner of the Wayland Housing Authority, spoke against the article, calling it “premature” and citing the need for a feasibility study to determine the best use of the land.
Ducharme spoke of the history of the Dudley Pond area as “a distinctive tight-knit community” that was once considered “the rough side of town.”
The area was initially settled as summer cottages and camp sites, said Ducharme, “a succession of 20-by-100 foot campground lots.”
“In the past 50 years the cottages have been winterized and improved but the eclectic architectural styles and historic roots of the community are still ever-present today,” said Ducharme. “We treasure this distinctive identity and any development of this space would suburbanize and remove a significant vestige of our history and our identity.
“ Today the area surrounding Dudley Woods has more housing and more people than any other part of Wayland. Over 2,600 people live in this square mile which makes up 20 percent of the town’s population.
Read the full story in Thursdays Town Crier.
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