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Westborough Select Board tables naming of new Nurse Street cemetery, asks for more public input
Summary
After a public hearing on three proposed names for the new Nurse Street cemetery, the Select Board voted to table the current submissions and seek additional nominations and possible policy changes, citing concerns about process, Historical Commission involvement and public outreach.
The Westborough Select Board on Oct. 14 held a public hearing on names submitted for the town's new cemetery on Nurse Street and voted to table the three proposed options to allow for further public input and possible refinements to the naming process.
The board had advertised three proposals: Harmony Grove and Farmland (submitted by residents with the required petition signatures) and Westland (recommended by the Westborough Historical Commission). At the hearing, Mike Shannon, cemetery lead in the Department of Public Works, spoke in favor of Harmony Grove as a continuity with existing names such as Pine Grove. The Historical Commission explained in a written memo that it favored Westland because of the site’s location in the western portion of town and the town’s cemetery-naming conventions.
Board members discussed multiple procedural issues before voting. Several members said they valued the Historical Commission’s historical review but worried the current policy effectively lets an appointed body submit a name and then recommend it, which could discourage residents who completed the signature process to propose names. Members also noted the policy’s 14-day public comment period and the exemption in the policy for appointed or elected boards to submit names without the 25-signature requirement.
After discussion, a motion to table the three submissions, seek additional names and return with a revised schedule for public notice carried on the board’s vote. The board recorded a 4–1 vote to table the current submissions and subsequently closed the hearing. The Select Board chair said the board may return with a revised public notice and that the town plans to give residents more opportunity to submit or revise names for the new cemetery.
What’s next: The board asked staff to set a timeline for additional nominations and to ensure the Historical Commission’s feedback and the resident petition materials are included for public review ahead of the next hearing. The board also left open the option to revisit the naming policy itself before resuming the process.
