Minutes from 15 May 2005 Meeting
12 people in attendance
People continue to be very energized about working toward an appropriate solution to the problems associated with the proposed development. Much progress has been made.
1. In addition to retaining legal counsel, we are now working with three engineers with considerable expertise in wetlands and civil engineering, storm water management, and traffic. We will meet with the engineers and our attorney in the next few days to discuss strategy.
2. Two letters to the Editor were recently published in the Athol daily news, publicizing people’s concerns with the proposed development. We intend to submit many more letters from individuals throughout the region to focus public attention on this issue.
3. Contacts at the Athol local radio station and AOTV are being developed to enable the group to obtain news interviews and to issue public service announcements.
4. The adjacent towns (e.g., Royalston, Orange) may have standing as “abutters” on Tully Lake and the Athol border, and we will explore the possibility of having the relevant Planning Board members in those towns submit formal letters advising Athol Boards about the concerns associated with the proposed subdivision.
5. People have been extensively leafletted in Athol, as well as users of Tully Lake and environs, and we will continue to do outreach. We have agreed on a final poster/leaflet design, which will be posted on our website so that people can easily download it and circulate it widely.
6. We have a final design for bumper stickers and lawn signs, and will go into production and distribution of these very shortly. We are able to do this at low cost thanks to the generosity of printing companies that recognize the importance of this issue. Many residents of the area have agreed to post lawn signs prominently to trigger interest and to distribute bumper stickers widely.
7. We have raised over $1500 since our last meeting, and will continue to fundraise aggressively.
8. A letter-writing campaign is underway to both Senator Brewer and Representatives Donelan and Knuuttila, and to raise the state-wide profile of this issue. We encourage ALL interested people to write to either or both of their elected representatives, and their addresses and emails are below.
STATE SENATOR STEPHEN M. BREWER
State House
Room 109-B
Boston, MA 02133
Telephone: (617) 722-1540
Email: Stephen.Brewer@state.ma.us
STATE REPRESENTATIVE CHRISTOPHER J. DONELAN
State House
Room 39
Boston, MA 02133 Orange, MA 01364
Telephone: 617-722-2930 978-544-2180
FAX: 978-544-5169
Email: Rep.ChristopherDonelan@hou.state.ma.us
STATE REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN KNUUTTILA
State House
Room 166
Boston, MA 02133 Orange, MA 01364
Telephone: 617-722-2900 (local) 978-632-0930
FAX: 617-722-2846 (local) 978-632-9320
E-Mail: Rep.BrianKnuuttila@hou.state.ma.us
People are also encouraged to contact the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EOEA). EOEA spearheaded the effort to protect land surrounding Tully Lake over the past few years, and they need to be notified that their efforts, and Tully Lake itself may be compromised by a large and damaging subdivision. The contact is:
Ellen Roy Herzfelder, Secretary of Environmental Affairs
Executive Office of Environmental Affairs
100 Cambridge, 9th Floor
Boston, Massachusetts 02114
Phone: (617) 626-1000
FAX: (617) 626-1181
Website: http://www.mass.gov/envir/
The next meeting of Friends of Tully Lake will be on Sunday, June 12 at 4:00pm at 3514 Chestnut Hill Avenue in Athol. Join us! You can make a difference in the future of Athol!