Chelmsford, Mass: A Small Bay State Town On The Chopping Block (OPINION)
*This story was written to memorialize Chelmsford’s great comeback, and the story of how it almost didn’t make it out of the baby boom. Facing budget cuts, total loss of farms and industry, and unprecedented population growth, it still managed to survive into this century. I hoped it would bring back memories of years past. The first chapter showcases Chelmsford’s rich history and community from centuries ago. The second chapter manages to showcase controversial topics and battles so the outsider can get a glimpse at how the community has struggled. The last chapter is dedicated to showcasing the great community of Chelmsford farmers, small business owners, and volunteers who dedicate their services to keep Chelmsford’s “charm” alive and well for future generations. The intent of writing this was not to disparage the residents of Chelmsford in a negative light, nor is it singling out a town. The topics discussed here are a common theme throughout the Rust Belt. This story shows how far we have come. Chelmsford is the best town I’ve ever lived in. The title above is sarcastic humor you commonly here from “Chelmsfordians”. All that is discussed here is debating politics and nothing personal.
*If you would like to read more on this topic and theme, a great book that goes more into detail was written by Eleanor Parkhurst called “The History of Chelmsford 1910–1970, A rural Massachusetts town deals with explosive growth in the 20th century.” It deals with many of the same topics discussed in this short story you are about to read.
Before you begin reading this, one may ask how I began writing this story. It all started with me observing my surroundings, and asking if and how we could improve our situation. Instead of just accepting reality I decided to question it, and that through this premise it would make for a story that was long overdo. All of the interviews and quotes I used in the story come from public town meetings, discussions which were broadcast on public access, and various local newspapers such as the Lowell Sun and Boston Globe. All of the photos used in this story were either taken by me, scanned from newspaper clippings I cut out, or used from the town’s own website paid for by taxpayers. Much has already been written about the history of Chelmsford but not so much where we are going today, and the economics and politics which are shaping future decisions that are being made to this town. That is what I found so intriguing. As you pulled away each layer of the onion, you began to uncover a great story that deserves to be told.
There are often stories that are written which are hard to talk about. Not hard in the sense they are difficult, but hard in that it’s a topic or discussion most of us don’t want to admit. It’s the elephant in the room and everyone is waiting for someone to point it out so we can shoot a tranquilizer into its back and return it to the zoo where it belongs. This is one of those touchy subjects and it means a lot to myself and the many that have grown up in this small town I am about to showcase. They have watched it grow over the many years to where it is today. What I am going to discuss is a phenomenon which is happening in every small town across the United States. As housing in the big city becomes out of reach for so many Americans, many new developers are looking to small towns desperate for cash in the name of affordable rentals. As condo development moves in, much of the original charm and character that makes up a town is demolished. Only the stories from longtime residents are left to be passed down to future generations. This is Chelmsford’s story.
For most of the town’s history the small Middlesex County community had relatively gone unchanged. Chelmsford historically had been an industrial and farm center of Massachusetts, home to giant dairy farms, egg factories, apple orchards, and the sounds of pigs that were passed down to generations of each family member for hundreds of years. Most of the residents either worked for a factory in North Chelmsford or owned their own farm. You had the Red Wing on Maple, and Sunny Meadows owned by the Lewis family. You had Marie Duckee’s across the street from Valley Ridge, and Blaisdale right behind it which was sold to build our middle schools. Spiros on Pine Hill had the best eggs in town, right across from Koulis that now lies collapsed alongside the highway where cow crossing was once a regular and you would always get a friendly wave driving by. Green Ridge Turkeys become a strip mall by the year 1998. The 128 acre Aldrich Farm connected Westford and Chelmsford raised over 60 sheep, turkeys, and horses in the red barn. Lupien’s Farm who sold the best cider and apple pies every year, and Perham known for their fresh cider as well. Mr. Jordan kept his sheep over on Acton Road until the high voltage lines went up, next door to Hillside Farm along North Road. On the east side you had the “big three” which included the towering home of Shedd’s Dairy and Sears Dairy next door on Marshall Street, and everyone would stop for the sweetest corn and squash at McKennedy’s that was eventually raised for housing development in 2015. Then there was the Town Farm on Billerica and Golden Cove where prison inmates were allowed to stay for up to 6 months while they improved their circumstances. There were as many as six families at a time in residence. They were required to work the farm to raise crops and animals for slaughter. Each family was responsible to cook one day a week. Staples like flour and sugar were provided by the town, as was the farm itself and its administration.
“My childhood memories gone! Living in East Chelmsford when there were farms. Cows and pigs and corn. A dairy farm across every street. I will never forget the sites and sounds of the old Chelmsford.” — Sandra Spence
“Sunny Meadows had a little store right at the farm’s main entrance where we got our dairy products. In the winter, we went sledding on the hilly pasture land. In the early spring, they would manure their strawberry patch, and my dad would say, “Breathe in deep! That’s what makes the strawberries so sweet!” — Kathi DeCanio
When Interstate 495 was erected in 1960 everything began to change a lot. It cut right through many of the original farm land segregating the town in half, and many small businesses were bypassed by new daily commuters which used the roadways as a means to get to and from work off the highway instead of using the two lane Route 3. For train tracks you could drive over but not so with the new Interstate System, and Chelmsford had the distinction of being one of the few towns in Massachusetts where the highways ran directly through them, redirecting traffic through their town center. Increased traffic was routed through the suburbs as it was removed from the surrounding cities in Lowell and Boston in an era where developers were looking to remove train routes and reduce traffic in city centers over the following decades.
“Skip’s was to Chelmsford what Durgin Park is to Boston, a restaurant where floorboards creak, the food tastes like mom’s cooking, and the breakfast counter outdates your grandfather. Gefteas and Burliss wouldn’t have it any other way. It means the building is more than bricks and wood, what even a wrecking ball can’t kill.” — Lowell Sun (9/5/2008)
Chelmsford like many small towns came equipped with their own tourist gift shop where you could buy a postcard to write back to relatives on your visit. Local attractions included the Chelmsford Twin Drive In, Alpine Lanes, Bowlarama in the center, and Courthouse Racquetball Club that hosted the Chelmsford Bowling Team. Many Saturdays would be spent drag racing at Wheel’s & Deals, and you had Chelmsford Auto Parts in the center. There were local night clubs like Thunderbird Lounge, Chevy’s Dancing Hall, The Commodore, and The Rocks. Every child took a trip down to Rollies, Ericson’s famous penny candies, buy a bike at Bill N Andy’s toy store, and ride on down for fun on Edwards Beach. You would have been a fool not to try the the chocolates at Nelson’s Candy. Rose and Rub at the old “Mill House” served the best gigantic jelly donuts and buttermilk biscuits.
If you wanted a bite to eat you just had to meetup at Skip’s Diner which became a cultural beacon attracting artists and transients passing through the town. You had the Fiske House serving country meals, and the Town Meeting where all the local politicians would meet to eat and make big decisions. In Chelmsford Center Jack’s Diner had the best fried clams and scallops with fresh cut fries “the real kind” drenched in fatty grease and beef tallow, along with Friendly’s everyone would meet for milkshakes after studying at the Adams library. The “famous” Glenview in North Chelmsford was serving Irish cuisine and a favorite place for a date night, and the old North Chelmsford Hardware as a staple along Vinyl Square since 1946. Another staple of the North was the Paramount Lounge where Dominick would cook you up what was called a “Western”, a New York style strip steak with great fries. The Press Club had the best Monti Christo sandwiches, Toni & Ann’s Pizza featured in the Simpsons, and of course who could forget Howard Johnson’s and where the Ground Round used to be?
Walked to Page’s from All Saints every Sunday to get the paper and have a cherry coke. Yum. Ericson’s had such a variety of penny candy. Would love to have our old town back, but that is progress for you I guess. — Barbara Mackey
Mill House still there, but the donuts are long gone and so well remembered, at just 5 cents a piece! We hit Ericson’s Penny Candy, Friendly’s and Mill House. We would walk a mile to enjoy one of the 3 on any given day. Great memories. Wish we still had our little town. — Gail Smaldone
It is not well known that Chelmsford was once the Massachusetts headquarters for the Hell’s Angels which became known as “Lion’s Den”. On a hot summer night you could peer into a smoke filled room lit by a black and white television set at the tiny house on top of the hill on North Road where they had setup camp. Chelmsford High School would eventually adopt the Lion as their mascot from the school’s bike club. Bikers would meet up every weekend at the Bucket Of Blood saloon or Meadow’s Lounge that used to exist on Vinyl Square, then overwhelming the Sunoco station on Drum hill and terrifying McDonald’s. You wouldn’t be caught dead there after the sun went down. Chelmsford also once had one of the Odd Fellows Fraternity headquarters directly in the Center dating back to 1895, where locals gathered many of nights to hear live music and drink draft beer as old friends and family reminisced. These are just some of the stories that made up the culture and character of a once tight-knit community that was almost shielded from the outside world. A bygone era that was almost too good to last. Between people moving here, or even the farmers’ kids not wanting to be farmers but choosing to sell the land or simply wanting to modernize the town, it was bound to evolve away from the sleepy farm town. It’s the nature of the human beast. It was change that was inevitable.
Ch. 1: An Era Of Budget Cuts (deleted upon request)
If you would like a full unabridged version of this story, please email me at bennewillboston@aol.com and will send you a PDF copy.
Ch. 2: Condos, Condos, & More Condos
Chelmsford’s original town motto is “let the children guard what the sires have won”. A town can be changed easily when people from a different area move in. People want to leave where they are and move to someplace different and then, try to make the new place exactly like the old one they wanted to leave. When the farms began to be sold off and New York developers came in to build on quarter acre lots or smaller, it was a difficult time. They moved to Chelmsford because it was quaint, low taxes, safe haven. Then, they wanted paved roads (or at least oiled), a permanent Police Department (was the Chief and ONE officer for night the rest were volunteer) a permanent Fire Dept (was volunteer). People showed up to a firehouse directed by the fire whistle and took the truck to the fire), from four room schools to big schools, sidewalks, businesses, movie theaters, bowling alleys, these “city people” wanted all the activity from the city and were otherwise bored. They knocked things down and “improved” things as they had no long-term connection to the town or it’s history. “Make it Modern, update it!” Residents who could trace their families back 300 years in Chelmsford could no longer afford the taxes because of all the “improvements”. Things that were done with a handshake were now legal nightmares. Conversations (or sometimes a punch in the nose) to settle differences were now court battles. At first, it was a “wild west” kind of invasion. New York developers did things “because there is no law against it” when before it was just courtesy. So, lots of things had to be put into law in attempt to save Chelmsford’s heritage and tradition from the all mighty dollar.
Out of the rubble and chaos of progress there remained the Chelmsford Historical Society, a mostly volunteer non-profit organization that was put together in 1930 with a sole mission dedicated to preserving what remained of Chelmsford’s story and history in the community. It began with many townies such as Harriet Bartlett, Margaret Mills, Janet Lombard and others who worked hard to preserve the dying vestiges of a changing farming town. Today they are headquartered at the The Barrett-Byam Homestead, constructed in 1663 with a legacy predating the Salem Witch Trials when Martha Barrett a local Chelmsford resident was placed behind bars on witchcraft charges. By 1970 it was finally turned into a museum after Charles and Ida Byam sold it back to the town in 1944. One can find a fire going in one of the five fireplaces, with spinning and quilling wheels, butter churns, a cheese press, and tin and woodenware to boot. In 1959 a local realtor who purchased a large acreage of land for development gifted the Chelmsford Old Garrison House to the historical commission which was a home dating back to before 1690. It was rumored to be a “fortified Garrison” that shielded the first settlers from attacks from local indigenous tribes when they first arrived. Along with the blacksmith shop that was donated by Chelmsford resident Elenore Parkhurst, thousands of school children from New England flock to the grounds every year and become “colonial children” for the day, learning candle and soap making, and other craft of the period from volunteers.
During the 1960s through the 1970s you had many developers moving into the town during the colonial revival period to take advantage of the housing boom. In just one decade the new population coming off the Interstate System settled down and doubled the population of the town as they had families. We needed housing and Chelmsford had plenty of wide open farmland. In 1961 alone, nearly 500 new homes were built and 28 new streets were established. You had developers like Campanelli Brothers who built a lot of the ranches and splits you will find throughout the town. Then you had the infamous Robert Hicks homes who at one time ranked second in new construction volume for all of Massachusetts. He built the capes, garrison colonials, gambrels, and farm houses and made complete neighborhoods out of barren forests. However he too was a local developer that lived in Chelmsford and had a connection to the town and kept a certain responsibility to the community, including being a contributor to the historical committee and helped with many projects that revived parks and our library.
In 1973 Charlie Parlee undertook the restoration of a dilapidated farm house on Pine Hill to its early configuration when new developers were bidding on the land. Much of the original hardware inside had been removed (without permission) prior to anticipated demolition. Charlie stepped it at the last moment and saved it for the town. Some of the hardware and other items were voluntarily returned. The Parlees spent significant time tracking down correct original hardware including hinges, latches, etc. by scouring New England especially seeking sites where buildings had burned to the ground. During this time period Chelmsford setup their first historic district in 1975 out of the center of their town, to protect what they called the “New England charm” and they called it the Central Square Historic District. When this was first created the town was rather strict on enforcement, and had a substantial amount of funding to defend their cases in court. One of their first disputes was when local resident Raymond Carye wanted to add on 10 parking spaces to a parcel of land he owned on Worthen Street in that year. The committee voted in a 4–1 vote not to approve the new parking lot and took the case to Superior Court, where they ultimately lost but they still put up a fight. That piece of land now makes up the Blake Funeral Home. In 1977 the commission would not approve the new bank that wanted to go in on Billerica Road until they limited their construction to two teller windows instead of three, and change their design to include a sloping roof with an added cupola.
Historic commissions are empowered to approve or deny requests for certificates of appropriateness, or permits for alterations on property within their jurisdiction. In 1980 The town center was recognized by the National Register. The town established its Master Plan Committee on the town’s planning board in 1996 which originally required the voting power to include a “regular citizen” who had lived in the town for some time, and established seven historic neighborhoods and villages to recognize their history to the community. As we head into the turn of the century though we started to enter the era of what could be described as the McMansion movement, and an increase in out of state developers moving in to seek permits for the erection massive housing complexes on previously developed lots.
“We believe that if the town is not careful, and continues with current trends, there exists a significant potential for increased urbanization that will have a negative effect upon the town. This would likely result in a degradation of our community’s quality of life, character, services and financial well being.” — Chelmsford Master Plan Committee (2010 Statement)
In the 1980s the town had received its first refurbishment project that was done on the Adams Library, Chelmsford’s own public library that was built by a member of the Adams family in 1894. The Library Committee was made up of a lot of “later to town” people that many residents suggested were forced on the community, after it was decided that instead of building a new second library at a different location they would renovate the historic Adams. This set off a legal battle that lasted two decades. In order for the town to be awarded a new $3.9 million state grant for a new addition that would modernize the town, the 200 year old Scoboria and Dutton homes would have to be demolished. The town’s people were not willing to take that as an answer, after it was sold by the town to local residents for a dollar.
“It was so sad to see that they painted the inside of Dr. Scoboria’s house/office. All that beautiful woodwork. Then, tore it down. THAT was a beautiful house next door to the Adam’s Library. “ — Bill Giers
“We were so excited to see all the trucks when we got here this morning. It has taken us a long time to get to this point. I can’t believe this day is finally here.” — Linda DeYoung
This would go down as the first time the town had put the money together to save a home. It was a good feeling on a cool early Thursday morning. Early morning drivers were the first to realize something big was about to take place in the center of the town. In spring of 1998 after four unsuccessful attempts Linda DeYoung and her husband Doug Marlow were finally able to watch the Children’s House move from its former home on Bartlett Street. The process began at 7 a.m when traffic from Routes 4 and 27 was redirected from the work site. Utility wires were removed from the poles and Chelmsford residents were left without power for the day. Although the total trip was less than a mile long it took an entire day to complete. The former Children’s Library would be cut in half and moved up off High St. The couple reported in the Lowell Sun they would restore the Children’s House to its originals state, having collected an abundance of historic photos which would be used in the process. The Dutton house on the other hand could not be saved and was torn down completely. All the old artifacts — paintings, display cases, etc from old library was dumped at Historical Society.
The first affordable housing complex that began in Chelmsford which threatened the town’s history was in 2004 known as the Robin Hill Meadows Project, when Emanouil builders wanted to construct 20 detached condominiums through Chapter 40B. This involved the threatened demolition of the 200 year old Reverend Parkhurst House after the builders from outside of Chelmsford took their case to the zoning board of appeals. This was at a time period when Chelmsford was still significantly funding housing renewal and saving projects through their historical commission, and the town community put up a fight to prevent it from being demolished. Under Chelmsford Historical Commission ran by members Jane Drury, Linda Prescott, and Torry Gullion successfully fought for the state Community Preservation Act adopted by Chelmsford in 2001, which could provide funding to protect and restore Chelmsford’s older home.
“The conference started badly, according to those in attendance, with a contentious back-and-forth between residents, builder Charles Emanouil and Emanouil’s lawyer, Douglas Hausler.” — Lowell Sun (8/13/2004)
Yet again in the same year we started to witness a new interest in previously developed land in the Chelmsford Historic Center. In 2004 the Garrison House Association a non profit dedicated to saving historic architecture in Chelmsford was encompassed with it’s largest project ever taken on, when the historic Hill “Trooper” Jock House built in 1756 located on Boston Road was in danger of getting the wrecking ball by an outside developer who wanted the land to build two much larger homes that were three times the size and could be sold for a lot more than a rotted out “little old” farm house on the hill. The Historic Commission put up a fight, and in a collective effort the town pooled donations for a bold idea that would involve lifting the 250 year old structure out of the ground and relocating it next to the Old Garrison House museum. It cost $100,000 and the trip took 4.5 miles, as traffic was shut down for 12 hours as it made its way through town with hundreds cheering on. The building was supposed to turn into a museum when the town ran out of funding, and today it stands quietly waiting for someone to give it the love it may deserve. It represented an incredible community effort but also the last time Chelmsford would go to such length to defend and save one of their original homes. If not for a developer willing to wait a few months to get his work under way and a historical association at the time with some cash on hand with a need for extra space, the historic Hill Jock House might be a pile of dust right now.
“I was told the Board thinks there is zero community value in the site and it might be better sold off and the very large endowment used for other things. This was unique to Chelmsford and soon will only be on a postcard or photo like a lot of our history.” — COSS (Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship)
Despite the promises of turning the Hill Jock home into a multipurpose building, housing display space and office space, as well as for hosting meetings, today it sits in its new location in a dilapidated state after the town ran out of funding. A similar project was taken up by the adjacent town of Westford in 2013 to save the Wright House on Chamberlain Road after Aldrich Farm was sold and new housing threatened to demolish it, but these efforts were few and far between. When the idea was brought up again to purchase and save the first mill of Chelmsford known as the “The Millstream” to open it up as a public museum with guided tours, the election was contested and voted down and the following one after was voted down too. The property has a long history with the local community having been owned by the original Adams family of Quincy since 1656 and until the mid 1800s. The millstream is one of the oldest historic site in the town of Chelmsford, and it came from a King’s grant known as the Adams Grant on July 3rd, 1656. It was Chelmsford’s first saw mill that was responsible for building the first properties in the community. It was found again abandoned and rotted out in the 1950s and restored on the original frame and foundation, and dam came back to be in operational condition. During the 1950s through 70s it was the site of small manufacturing companies of vacuum tubes and record players.
When an historic museum like this is added to the town’s portfolio such as the Garrison Home, the town now has to assume the responsibility of upkeep, staff and possible security. With the dam running the total upkeep of the entire property is estimated at $3 million a year. Chelmsford had already received $3.2 million in federal and state grants that was helping run this property, and are in the process of trying to collect the remaining funding back into the town budget so it can be dumped for the value of the land at the loss of history. Some estimate it would be too costly to keep the dam running on public funds and it wouldn’t make sense to transfer ownership.
Water runs strong at Chelmsford’s Millstream
“Ripsom, 84, has been the lead caretaker of the property since 2011, when longtime friend Lloyd Greene Jr. died and left it to him with the goal of maintaining it and establishing an educational and recreational facility for the enjoyment of the people of Chelmsford.” — Lowell Sun (6/25/2018)
Just in the last year the property went up for sale and it is at risk of being demolished according to the director of the Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship who called it high on the “endangered list” due to lack of interest by town management. The board have had lawyers working on this for years to sell the site off. The Millstream does not accept members so there are only 3 or 4 people on the board at any given time who decide the site’s future, and they want a new trust for education not an edition center so its future with Chelmsford is bleak. Much to the sadness of the Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship volunteer service, who was in the process of building a new park by the Russel Mill which property was going to serve as the entrance.
There was some small victories that we can be grateful for. In the early 2000s when a lot of this development began popping up and threatening historic architecture, the Chelmsford Historic Society successfully rallied officials to extend the delay of demolition permits which was originally much shorter than other communities at 14 days, to the 60 days where it sits today. So we had an interesting time period for awhile where hope was starting to come back. We thought we saw light at the end of the tunnel. In the last ten years there has really been a pushing of new developers running for town committees. The sole purpose of the VCOD was to allow for flexibility in zoning rules to promote redevelopment, while at the same time setting expectations within the town amongst developers and abutters for what sort of development should and would happen in the historic center district. The caveat was that it allowed for special permits or alternative compliance, which means that a project could work around the VCOD requirements but would require a supermajority on the committee to pass. It was in that same year that Joseph Ready owner of Ready Real Estate Agency in Chelmsford ran for selectmen, and was chosen as the “regular citizen” that would be allowed voting power on the planning board.
The planning board instituted density bonuses with the original intention of rewarding development that connected to public open spaces like a park. Many builders also applied for new state grants for 40B housing to bypass zoning restrictions, even if the amount of low income units on any particular property only amounted to 20%, and that’s if they don’t “expire” as affordable units. If 100 “affordable” units become market-priced, then six 100-unit developments would need to be built to reclaim the lost units. The loophole was that this inadvertently created the incentive for larger developments to move into what was previously the historic district enjoyed by the community connecting to our parks and mom & pop shops. One of those large developers moving in was Katz Group based out of Alberta Canada working with local builders Finnegan Development owned by the New England Finnegan family empire. By the old train station lot where a new pizza shop had moved in a few years prior, the board approved by a supermajority the construction of a new 32-unit four story luxury condominium nicknamed the Grist Mill on the basis that it could exceed height requirements if it were constructed with a mansard roof to match the adjacent historic buildings in the town center. One month into construction the planning board modified their decision to include a mansard roof at request of the new developer not to include one. Keep in mind the entire surrounding properties are small single family homes with a population of under 20,000 people and no upgrades to sewage.
“ They build these condos and turn over the building to the condo owners and leave commitments and unfulfilled promises that those owners then have to deal with. Plan, develop, build, sell then move on. That’s the cycle, and they do it very well in town .. I would say better than any other surrounding town.” — Phillip Stanway
“Well looks like the Glenview is going down today. Just like that our history is gone. We should rename Chelmsford to CONDO!! What a sad day.” — Michael Lynch
All of that was completed by 2020 in a period of two years. The following year the former Glenview Restaurant which had been a staple in the town community for over 60 years since 1958 decided to close up shop during the pandemic. After much speculation the original buyers of the property that had planned on keeping it a restaurant backed out and sold it to developers Page and Trahan. The construction company is owned by the family of elected Congresswomen Representative Lori Trahan, a native of Westford in the town next door. In its place will stand a 10 condo unit, and 600 condo unit from land across the street. In that same year the planning board also made final approvals for another large condominium complex on public land the town originally used for storing salt for the winter, various gravel and stone stockpile, and other road material for a fast dollar along Littleton Road. The site was labeled Beaver Brook Crossing, an 84 unit four story luxury condo complex that got 40B subsidies to build in Chelmsford, because 17 out of the 84 are affordable housing units. That was built by the Emanouil Brothers. In the year 2020 we also saw the Kinloch complex constructed, a new 168 units in four high rise buildings along Route 110, where local businesses, shops, and our bowling alley once stood in its place.
In the year 2000 the land which includes the historic Fiske House built in 1791 and the Odd Fellow Building built in 1896 went up for sale. The property was sold to a real estate firm based out of Beverly Hills, California known as Americal Management in 2000. In that time period they have left the inside of the Fiske House vacant for two decades, contributing to the field stone foundation flooding every winter and rainstorm with a serious mold problem inside, as well as structural damage on the outside. In 2019 the property management firm decided to sell their land to housing developers after the bank utilizing the space decided not to renew their lease. This was the beginning of disinvestment.
An infamous story was that the proposed project was going to Stonegate Construction based out of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Their alternative compliance was originally going to be approved as their legal excuse was they could not build an underground garage on a floodplain, so they had to build the foundation above the wetland making it an extra story than the original permit they applied for which only allowed four levels. Even though the Chelmsford zoning district only allows for three levels as it is. Otherwise the proposed building would be an un-conforming plan, in an illegal building, on an illegal lot, with an illegal sewer hookup, in a town which had already seen its water pressure drop significantly because the town relies on well water instead of municipality city water hookup. On top of all of that, Central Square would now lose a significant piece of public property. When the Grist Mill complex was being proposed for approval, one of the big issues brought up was access to public parking that would be lost from building this development. The planning committee came to an agreement that parking to access the center would still be available from the community parking center. With the proposed housing complex on Billerica Road that public parking space will be going away. However these problems alone are unfortunate but not the legal argument. The legal argument is what brings about an understanding to why this is happening in the first place.
The last project had shown to be in large support by the board on the promise that the Odd Fellows will undergo a restoration and create an asset for the community. One proposal called for a new restaurant which the builders said there would be no guarantee, and because they offered up an architectural historian to refurbish the structural problems at the Fiske House which is one of the oldest homes still standing that has become an icon to our town center and the people who drive by every day. The greater concern should not be the high rise condo development that is moving in, but that the town of Chelmsford is setting a precedent in New England for political extortion in regards to historic preservation of their history. For with any future historic preservation project, will that now involve trading favors for work done to save an historic property by fast-tracking approval of special permits for new housing development that is out of compliance? For a town that has found no other way of raising enough money to protect their intellectual property in the one historic district they have, they have resorted to seeking help from outside developers who insist on moving in. This would not be questionable if there were not a handful of real estate agents sitting on the planning board and town selectman committees themselves. For this reason many in the community feel an association of the fox guarding the hen house. Does Chelmsford deserve better and if so what should be done about it?
Within weeks of the public hearing residents of Chelmsford became distraught, and a petition was started gaining 3,000 signatures in less than three days to stop the development in the historic town center. As proof that five stories were not necessary, after the Lowell Sun picked up the controversy the developer revised the plan and brought forward a 4 story 24 unit high end condominium development, instead of the former 5 story 32 unit which was still out of compliance. News of community activism spread to local new media and a pressure campaign put upon local officials represented a breaking point where residents had said enough is enough. In early February the planning board came to a vote of 4–2 against. The town’s people had won a small victory when all hope had thought to have been lost. It showcased what could be done on the local level when just a few raised their voice. It showed that we did not have to blindly accept what was happening. It was proof that democracy in the 21st century still works when you fight for it.
I spoke with the town’s Community Development Manger Evan Belansky to ask for his opinion on moving new property into historic districts. In the interview he explained to me that he felt it was about coordinating a balance between community and developers, and that the last three developments found that balance and were obvious benefits to the community. He also informed me that it is apparently illegal to consider the impact a new property will have on local schools and classroom size during considerations.
“Without flexibility in the zoning and a willingness to apply it, there would not be any significant redevelopment in Chelmsford. Just because zoning says something does not mean that the development community will agree that it makes sense for them, hence a balancing act.” — Evan Belansky (Chelmsford Community Development Director)
Now if that were the only issue in one historic district over a few parcels of land then perhaps it would not be as big of a deal. Another greater tragedy is also for the fact that Chelmsford only applied to fund and protect one historic district on the National Register and that being their center. There are a total of seven historic villages through the town full of registered historic homes, that are not protected from getting demolished or modified. Chelmsford was a town that was incorporated in 1655. The community has lost hundreds of homes over the years dating back to the 18th and 17th century to large single family lots, after buyers who originally promised to preserve them went ahead and tore them down. Many of these homes were former 18th century farm houses that are left on abandoned lots until the value of the home reaches close to the value of land, until a new builder comes along and sees a golden opportunity for more space and buys up the land for new development.
“When Cheryl Needle (now deceased) sold this home she was told her family farm house would be restored to its former grandeur. Over the years Chelmsford has lost so many of its older homes, and once they’re gone that piece of history is gone forever.” — Bernard Ready
The three big players in Chelmsford luxury housing builds today have been Coldwell Banker which has 3,000 offices in 49 countries and territories, one of those offices placed right here in Chelmsford Center. They base themselves out of New Jersey. Then you have Barrett Sotheby’s International which built a new office right in Carlisle in the town over. Their network has more than 19,000 sales associates in 990 offices in 72 countries and territories worldwide. Finally you have Century 21 which is one of the largest agencies in the country, with 9,400 independently owned and operated franchised broker offices in 80 countries and territories worldwide with over 127,000 sales professionals. They used to have their Chelmsford offices right across the street from Coldwell. You also have the three local small players. Era Real Estate with 15 offices in Massachusetts that took over the old Century 21 building, Lamacchia Realty with their main offices in Chelmsford serving Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire, and you have the new Ready Real Estate owned by local housing mogul Joseph Ready. The motto on his building reads, “Ready, Sell, Gone”. These agencies have been known to contract with local builders such as Wescon Incorporated, EJG Properties, Maloney Properties, and Stonegate Incorporated. So far every developer which has constructed condo housing in Chelmsford has gone through the same legal firm Howard Stein Hudson on most every project. These groups have turned flipping properties into an exact science and efficient machine. Some opponents see them as vikings pillaging their way into small town communities for a quick buck, while others would say they are raising the value and assets of the community and without them we would see no development. Well maybe that is true, and if we look at the rise in property taxes and water bills every time a new project finishes then it makes sense. However you would see this is not normal when looking at the surrounding towns, and examining the way they treat new development.
A case example we can use is Carlisle, a similar small farming town right next store that touches Chelmsford. They are now the third wealthiest town in a state with 350 cities and town. In the year 2021 they have maintained a population of under 5,000 people. The 40B regulations are supposed to apply as a long as the ‘character’ of the town is preserved. Of course, the population of a town has to be taken into consideration as well, but Carlisle at about 1/5 of Chelmsford’s population, ought to have 1/5 of our new development. They don’t. It’s not for a lack of open space either. Towns like Carlisle, Harvard, Lexington, Concord, Groton, Dunstable, and Westford have amounts of open space so copious as to make surrounding communities appear to be completely congested and entirely overwrought. How could one explain what has happened to Chelmsford, Billerica, and Tewksbury?
“I have biked in every corner of Carlisle for years. Take a drive through yourself. I am sure somewhere there is a structure in that town that meets the legal compliance of 40B, but for all practical purposes, they have entirely evaded their obligations.” — Daniel Calvo
Towns like Carlisle have multiple disadvantages from Chelmsford. Everyone in Carlisle relies on well water, so any big project has to go through the ringer to make sure they won’t negatively impact neighboring wells. Many local residents may also say that because soil there is mostly rock it is unable to support large developments like condo complexes. Keep in mind that towns like Gloucester residing on the entirely rocky granite outpost of Cape Ann, have a combination of septic and sewer. They also have lots of apartment buildings. Parts of Carlisle could easily be refitted for sewer to allow for apartment dwellings in designated parts of town. Maybe the better question would be, do the residents in the town want more development? Right now in the year 2021 Carlisle has met 3% of the 40B goals of 10%. However what they have considered in compliance are actually single family homes. In order to be in actual compliance they would need to have at least 3 large apartment style 40B structures. They have zero. Chelmsford has 16 and counting.
Maybe Carlisle as well was wise enough many years ago to add on building restrictions, in which you can only build a house on what is called a ‘Pork Chop Lot’. This means they don’t have houses built on top of houses like Chelmsford does. That is not to say Chelmsford would have or should have done something so restrictive, but would it have been wise to restrict to one acre building lots 30 years ago? The result of inaction and state intervention has been that middle income communities have had much of their own ‘character’ and many of their open spaces ravaged under the guise of helping the poor but not in some communities. The declared positive result of lower income folks benefiting through subsidized units achieved in a manner so small as to be statistically negligible. Those folks were supposed to benefit in measurable quantities and in all communities; including Carlisle. The numbers touting the success of the Massachusetts 40B program are skewed as well, because it’s in the way the state defines “affordable” housing. Their definition of affordable housing is if less than a quarter is set aside. What if we raised the requirement to above 50% or more, would they still get built?
Ch. 3: What’s Next For Chelmsford’s Future?
I understand this may have been a long read but I felt as if it must be said. If you have made it this for I congratulate you for making it all the way through. I have been a resident in Chelmsford for 30 years of my life so far. My family first had roots in Chelmsford going back to the late 1930s when they rented a summer cottage by Heart Pond only then it was called. My grandparents officially moved to Chelmsford in the mid 1960s where my mother was eventually born. I began writing this short story six years ago in a notebook and also in my mind, when I started keeping track of the social and economic changes that were happening not just far away but also close to home. That is when I thought it would be incredibly unique to start asking my neighbors who have been alive for longer than I have of how they feel history has changed over the last century before I was even born. That is when I decided that taking real quotes from real residents would make a story come alive. Over the course of writing this I received much help from residents in locating old newspaper articles, and I’d like to thank all of those who were so gracious to me in sharing their life stories. For those who did not give me permission to share their name I have kept them anonymous out of respect for their privacy.
Perhaps this is why Chelmsford would go onto make a grand television appearance as the almost perfect backdrop for Simpsons town of Springfield, a fictional small town middle class community also struggling to stay relevant. In a community that was overtaken by robber baron Burns and his nuclear power racket, greasing the local mayor Quimby with his Kennedyesque accent so he can bypass environmental and safety rules with his special prize; what’s in the box? The scenario exemplified in the Springfield versus the more affluent Shelbyville civil war that runs strong. You have Springfield Elementary School modeled after Chelmsford’s McCarthy Junior High, a school that is overcrowded because of insufficient funds to build more classrooms. Smoking teachers like the old high school “smoking lounge”. The disabled ramp access system constructed by the local mafia. The village drunk and the overzealous police force led by Wiggum. Anyone who remembers the name Dickey Adams knows what I’m talking about. Every cliche of a small town struggling to find its future purpose wrapped up into a cartoon sitcom.
The Summer of 2007 was an exciting year for our small community. The creators of the Simpsons were visiting our public library but what for? It was there I met Lance Wilder, the background illustrator and designer since season 2. As we walked inside greeting us was Lance and Matt Groening, and behind them were a board of illustrations and printed script from the show. They were there promoting their new book at the time “The Simpsons Handbook: Secret Tips From The Pros.” It was there they started to tell us one big secret about the show. That we were all invited to the library, because it was revealed inspiration behind the town of Springfield on the show. As it turns out, many cast of the Simpsons graduated from Chelmsford Public High School. Including prop designer John Krause who graduated in the class of ’86 who both grew up in Chelmsford, MA and around Boston. It was from Chelmsford where starting from Season 2 they grew inspiration from architecture and even some characters from the local area. In front of us were authentic prints that Lance and John drew themselves.
“I had come up with the original comic book and baseball card shop and the Springfield Town Hall, and I just thought the Adams Library in Chelmsford would make a good kind of a traditional looking town hall. I basically flopped the Chelmsford design and added a bell tower.” — Lance Wilder
After graduating from the Rhode Island School Of Design, these two friends went onto to Hollywood looking for work. It is there they met Matt Groening who was looking for background ideas for the Simpsons to live in. From the firehouse, to Tony & Anne’s Sub Shop, Zesty’s Pizza and even Skip’s Diner, all can be found in one form or another back in their home town. Over the years we have lost a lot of these icons that made Chelmsford unique. Throughout this story we talked about how Chelmsford has seen drastic change in just recent years and that we are in a large transition period. If you drive through our town centers and look closely you will begin to notice a cry for help. The hidden cracks coming apart at the seams. You see a town that is in distress but does not want to admit it. The Mobil gas station which had been at the center of our town for over 70 years was going to be replaced by a new owner never happened and was left abandoned in a dirt lot. No buyers. When Bob’s Coins a staple of Chelmsford for 40 years announced retirement, his shop was broken into and building has since been left abandoned. Chelmsford’s main floral shop Feeneys that used to deliver the best flowers are still empty with no buyers. Acton 9 Dance Studio and bowling allies will soon be condos. Odd Fellow’s Building was abandoned when the bank left along with our Fiske House. This is increasingly becoming more common as the years roll by.
“The Town cannot compel property owners to improve the facade appearance of their properties. Due to the backlogs as a result of the pandemic, it would also be difficult for the Town to obtain court approval to enforce landscaping concerns.” — Paul Cohen (Chelmsford Town Manager)
“Wires everywhere, leaning telephone poles, crumbling roads, vacant buildings, unkempt landscaping … not that beautiful actually … some spots, yes … tremendous potential!! Take a walk through other towns like Lexington & Concord.” — Steve Chelmsford (Radio DJ)
This should not be viewed as a personal attack against any businesses or the business owners by any means. Not at all. Many are actively involved in trying to save these mom and pop shops and prevent more industry from leaving. Many are pointing out that large parts of Chelmsford are becoming dilapidated as property owners leave them abandoned. That is what the photos show. Many believe the town should take the opportunity to redevelop the center for new businesses before it’s too late. Small businesses are struggling in Chelmsford because of bad management. Odd Fellows has sat empty for 20 years. Fingers should never be pointed but we should also not ignore the problems either. Other towns look much nicer than ours. Right now our former farming town may be going in the wrong direction and we could do a lot more. The question to ask becomes, why is Chelmsford not attracting new businesses like other surrounding Boston suburbs such as Billerica, Tewksbury, Littleton, Acton, Andover, Bedford? That is a good debate to have. For the size of our population we should have a lot more industry. The irony is that we had substantially more industry and manufacturing here 50 years ago when we had half the population size. The numbers are not adding up and it’s getting scary to some holding onto old ways and traditions. What is becoming of their little farm town?
Chelmsford has always been through a lot and survived. We made it through a Revolutionary War and Civil War, the Great Depression, Vietnam draft, and the Great Recession, and now the deadliest pandemic in recent history where we witnessed 112 deaths and we have always bolted back as a community. After the death of George Floyd the town witnessed close to one thousand residents of our mostly white community coming together in peace, after a local Chelmsford High School student Emma Walsh organized a vigil. In attendance Chelmsford Police Chief came up to the podium and apologized to black residents of Chelmsford for police turning a blind eye to systemic racism for so long, and called what happened to George Floyd “murder”. We listened to folk music from students, and heard stories of how black families in Chelmsford experienced racism and continue to be affected and how we can help. I attended and it was a life changing experience for the fact that you never believe it’s happening in your own backyard. After we all marched together through the Center, and would have been holding hands if it were not in the middle of a pandemic. It gave me great hope for the future.
At the end of the vigil our police chief ordered the entire police department to take a knee for nine minutes including everyone who attended. Black residents also spoke to white residents about the history of racism in Massachusetts at booths, and everyone came together for one day of peace. It seemed like for the bickering and politics you witness around the community, for one day division and separation dissolved as we joined hands. One thousand strong then marched through the center of the town that was led by black residents. It could be described as the greatest day of unity our town seeped in division and bitter feuds had experienced in a long time.
Through all of this there have been many small victories to be proud of. The last piece of open space in the town center you can find is a mysterious grassland tucked away in the corner labeled Bartlett Park. Every year you will see local residents flocking there to take senior photos, family picnic, or and morning meditation. It represents the pasture that was donated to the town by Harriett Bartlett that officially created the Chelmsford Land Conservation Trust. Ever since 1961 the organization has been dedicated along with the Chelmsford Historical Society to saving what is left of open space and Chelmsford original architecture and agriculture. Today the Land Trust now owns nine open spaces around the town. They’ve since added on to include Archer Meadowbrook, Bartlett and Bovey woodlots, Miriam Warren Wetlands, Warren Wildlife Sanctuary, and the most recent acquired was the Kroll-Calder-Larter Pasture donated in 1992. These lands, totaling about 80 acres, are preserved as remnants of Chelmsford’s industrial and agricultural past.
After development threatened the last of small family farms in the area, residents raised money for the Chelmsford Land Conservation Trust to purchased the former Sunny Meadows Farm from the Lewis family in 2008 to create a conservation restriction on the site to restrict further development for agriculture. Today it now serves as the Walter F Lewis Community Garden named after the original owner, and the The Richard St. Ogne Community garden, one of the few remaining green spaces left in Chelmsford. You also have one of the last crop fields left in Chelmsford ran by The community also banded together to support various CSA’s (Community-supported agriculture) at the remaining farms left at their yearly farmers market. Chelmsford. This include husband and wife farming couple Phil and Deborah Jones who moved into to the farmhouse they attached to their store in 1988 when they opened Jones Farm. Once a year they grow their organic native tomatoes, fresh dug white potatoes, spaghetti squash, green beans, peaches and nectarines and the usual squash and cukes along with Dom’s meats. However during the pandemic the famous farm stand of Chelmsford made the decision to retire its indoor farm stand and reduce its hours at farming market. In 2012 Phil was diagnosed with guillian barre syndrome, and it’s very likely a decade from now the last commercial farm in Chelmsford will go into retirement.
“If a farm fails most of the time is goes to housing or as an open space that really is no longer a farm (Red Wing farm and Warren Farm). We want to keep real farming alive in town, so generations from now people can still see the farming traditions that have been going on for over 400 years in town.” — COSS (Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship)
Keeping the hope alive is the the Chelmsford Open Space Stewardship, an independent group of resident volunteers, maintains the town’s open space and community gardens, and hosts free community events including music and discussions to build a sense of community and stewardship with new and young volunteers that also work with Chelmsford High and local church groups. This includes irrigation, rebuilding green houses, fixing farm equipment, and maintaining roads around Chelmsford’s neighborhoods. They constructed their own well on Wotton street street in North Chelmsford which pumps 20 gallons per minute of ice cold clear water to the community garden and with enough bandwidth and adequate pressure to help open Bits n Pieces, the only operating farm left in North Chelmsford. The organization does help local businesses because they see it as a way to keep open space healthy and family friendly. They do this for the town, so people can enjoy it but also for “for profit” farms. Farmers have very small staffs and during planting especially they need extra help. Farmers also give back in major ways to the town. They donate produce to our food pantries, they offer educational opportunities and most of all they keep land as it has been for hundreds of years with flowers and plants that support our wild life and insects (especially bees). Farmers also have large equipment and have helped on so many open space projects I cannot count.
Chelmsford has a long history of agricultural organizations. In 1794, a society formed for “useful improvements in agriculture.” In 1803 the Western Society of Middlesex Husbandmen was lead by its first president, Ebenezer Bridge. And starting in 1850, the Chelmsford Farmers and Mechanics held cattle shows that were “great events in the rural communities.” Parlee Farm at Proctor Road hints of another time, when Chelmsford was a sprawling farm community, with a little brown self-serve stand where you can buy eggs on the side of the road by leaving your money in a box. Every warm summer you can see countless cars pulling up to the farm stand to buy fresh produce, and each season they open up their land for fresh picking hunts for apples, tomatoes, and strawberries to make strawberry shortcake. Every Easter the kiddos gather for a local egg hunt the Parlees hide away, and down the road every Halloween a huge haunted corn maze opens up. Across the street from the Chelmsford high school and Chelmsford Police Station between a highway intersection remains a single strip of land from a local farmer that refuses to sell his horse and cattle farm and part ways. Going back many decades the state and local area has been the hosting town of the Middlesex 4-H fair, three-day fair drawing 5,000 attendees every late summer featuring more than 100 events and exhibits from horse shows and obstacle courses to hayrides and rabbit races, Milking competitions, livestock demonstrations, and lots of people sitting around on benches eating, laughing, and generally having a wonderful time.
“I think 4-H Fairs are important to the community as we are getting away from our long history of agriculture. It is important to keep that history alive and inform the public about the types of activities our 4-H members are working on — not just raising and caring for animals but also cooking, woodworking, art, photography and other useful skills.” — Vice President Lisa DeScenza
In recent years the few remaining hiking trails such as Crooked Springs Reservation, Russel Mill, and Thanksgiving Ground Town Forest had become unusable and overgrown, and COSS has been working with Eagle Scouts to bring them back to life. It would be in 2009 when the state awarded money to buy the old train tracks on the Framingham Line which would go onto be known as the Bruce Freeman trail, which was the area’s first bike path ever built. It now includes 7.7 miles of trail and an additional 5.3 miles coming. Maybe these are the small victories we need to be appreciative of. It’s not the agriculture and industrial industry it was 100 years ago, but every little bit counts when it comes to keeping a once small town above water.
In recent years there remains the “Growing Up In Chelmsford” Facebook group, where townies gather to speak of their memories of a different time. You too can join to lean about Chelmsford’s history. Perhaps no images are a better representative of division within community than the photographs above, half developed and half farmland. Struggling to find its future identity in an unsure brave new world closing in on the once faint and quiet town of New England. Is this becoming the new normal we will all have to accept in the name of progress? There are many who will read this article and know exactly what I’m talking about. There may be some who are even in denial of the problems we face. Chelmsford’s story is one of great resilience and strength, among its people to preserve the old and original meaning, but also not be left behind. I only hope to give a voice and showcase history and culture before it is gone for good. People ask where did the old homes, shops, farms, and families go? They went up, up, and up, until they could not build anymore. All that remained in the dust of dirty construction and the noise of a grumbling diesel engine was the sound of silence, speechless empathy looking towards the site of once fertile soil of our ancestors. The only question that remains is a simple one, and that is the town’s motto. After the sires have won, will there be anything left for the children to guard?
Update 2023: Some Good News!
In Summer of 2023, it was reported that the historic Fiske and Odd Fellows buildings were getting a total restoration without the need for building a condo like previous proposals. Local Chelmsford resturant owner of Fish Bones Ali Reza Zosherafatain purchased the building with plans to extend a new steak house, and the 18th century Fiske home was sold to a new family who wanted to take on saving a historic property. The first time a family has lived in the home in more than three decades. Proof that when community bands together, we do not need to jump to the fastest dollar.
