West Concord advisory committee advances implementation matrix, aims to finalize before MCI Concord consultant work

The West Concord Advisory Committee spent the bulk of its Feb. 5 meeting refining a multi-decade implementation matrix for West Concord village and agreed to accelerate completion so the document can inform the consultant the town manager is expected to select to lead the MCI Concord visioning process.

Committee Chair Susan (last name not specified) opened the discussion by saying the group should “get into our implementation matrix, and I’d love to make some headway on that tonight,” and members then reviewed the status, priority and MCI relevance of roughly three dozen listed projects, from pedestrian crossings and parking to pocket parks and trail connections.

The matrix was originally drafted in 2010 and committee members said many entries need reclassification for 2025. Committee members and Town staff discussed which items are “complete,” “in progress,” “partially complete,” or “not started” and flagged several items as especially relevant to the MCI Concord planning effort because they affect access, parking and circulation near the former prison site. Elizabeth (Town staff, planning-related) said a consultant recommendation “has been recommended to the town manager,” and that once a consultant contract is in place the work will move quickly: the consultant team will face a “sprint to June 30.” When asked about timeline, Elizabeth said, “I think that’s about right.”

Key outcomes and clarifications from the meeting: - Timeline and use: The committee set an internal goal to finish the matrix so the consultant and MCI advisory stakeholders can use it during the visioning process. Members discussed voting on the matrix in March and agreed to aim for an agreed final version in that timeframe. - Outreach and stakeholders: Elizabeth confirmed the MCI advisory process has identified more than 100 stakeholders and that the West Concord Advisory Committee is on the stakeholder list. The consultant selection and any resulting contract will go through the town manager and standard procurement steps. - Project statuses: Committee members reclassified many entries. Projects discussed as active or in-progress included pedestrian and bicycle connections to the commuter parking lot (noting coordination is required with the MBTA), intersection reconfigurations and the Assabet River Bridge & Trail design work. Items discussed as not yet started or awaiting funding included a Com Ave–Maple Court connector (considered not feasible by members), a roundabout option at the Lawsbrook/Kenny Dunn Square area, and certain trail upgrades that cross or abut private property. - Parking and parking management: The committee agreed the town’s existing parking plan needs updating. Members noted the potential for off‑street parking at Baker Avenue business park to serve rail commuters once the Assabet River bridge connection is in place and property owners have completed development. Anna Feldwick and others recommended the matrix call out specific locations (for example, the first block of Commonwealth Avenue from Main to Church) when the original descriptions were too broad. - Pedestrian safety: Members revisited previously completed streetscape work at Main and Commonwealth avenues and discussed an additional crosswalk request near Village Tavern and Wood Hill Table; they left the item marked partially complete and worthy of follow-up. - Trails and small parks: Several pocket-park and trail items were discussed. The Heritage Park/interpretive panel along the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail behind Brookside Square was identified as effectively completed; the Neshoba/Assabet informal trail behind the Thoreau School remains an informal path with questions about private land ownership and feasibility of formalizing it. - Matrix maintenance: The committee refined procedures for editing and approving minutes and agreed a single member should circulate draft matrix edits to involved parties; Susan and other members volunteered to meet separately with absent members to finalize outstanding rows.

Committee members emphasized that many matrix items will require coordination with other town boards and external agencies (for example, the MBTA and the select board for public parking), and that some projects may be contingent on broader decisions from the MCI Concord process or state-level outcomes such as developer permitting. The group resolved to continue work in March, meet separately with absent members as needed, and present a consolidated matrix to the full committee for a vote.

"I make a motion that we adjourn the meeting," Chair Susan said at the end of the session; the committee adjourned at 9:09 p.m.

The committee also recorded several nonbinding decisions during the meeting: staff were asked to explore convening a West Concord roundtable of committee chairs (see below), and the committee chair noted Jennifer Schoneman, a co-owner of the proposed guitar museum, has been invited to attend the March meeting to discuss building plans and how the project might preserve a large tree at the site.