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ARTICLE 5 Project: Land Purchase – Off Cedar Street and off Hartwell Avenue CPA Category: Open Space Amount Requested: $186,100 Amount Recommended: $186,100 CPC Vote: Approval (9-0) Project Description: This project requests funding for the purchase of two parcels and their associated appraisal, survey and legal costs. Acquisition: $140,000. Appraisal/Survey/Legal: $46,100. The total of $186,100 covers all acquisition costs for the two parcels. 1. 9.50 Acres Vacant Land Off Cedar Street Map 73 Lot 6A This 9.50 acre parcel off of Cedar Street, owned by the Goodwin Family Trust, is largely wetland and completely wooded. The wetlands here drain into the Kiln Brook, which serves as a headwater stream for the Shawsheen River Watershed and the Town of Bedford’s water supply. The parcel is sandwiched between the Meagherville conservation area (~ 61 acres) and the Town-owned Pine Meadows Golf Course (~ 88 acres). While the parcel does have frontage on a paper street, it does not have frontage on a currently existing public street, and therefore the only practical access is through Meagherville and Pine Meadows. The parcel serves as an important area for wildlife habitat, extending the forested boundary of the Meagherville area and adding wetland habitat diversity. Meagherville is one of the older forested areas in Lexington, with a relatively flat pine-beech forest in the uplands that provides an important food source in the form of beechnuts to deer, squirrels, turkeys, and birds. Extending the boundary of Meagherville with this parcel also allows for additional passive recreational opportunities for visitors. As a wooded lot surrounded by open space and serving as a headwaters area to the Shawsheen River Watershed, this parcel sits in a key location for acquisition by the Conservation Commission. Protecting the property in perpetuity would benefit the Town’s residents, wildlife, and waterways (as well as Bedford’s water supply) by conserving an additional 9.50 acres of forest and wetlands in the middle of two Town-owned open space areas. 2. 10.7 Acres Vacant Land Off Hartwell Avenue Map 73 Lot 8 This 10.7 acre wooded parcel off of Hartwell Avenue, also owned by the Goodwin Family Trust, is roughly half wetland and half upland. An open area under the NSTAR power easement, it is the only non-forest area of the parcel. Kiln Brook, which crosses the southeastern corner of the parcel, serves as a headwater stream for the Shawsheen River Watershed and Town of Bedford’s water supply. While there is currently no access to this landlocked parcel, there is a possibility of future access through abutting private parcels. 7