Select Board approves application to plant about 100 trees at Lake Chauncey

The Westborough Select Board on April 23 approved a request from the Department of Public Works to pursue a grant to plant roughly 100 native, deciduous trees at the former state hospital property near Lake Chauncey.

Chris Bant, director of public works, highlighted recent tree-division work including volunteer Arbor Day crews that planted and removed trees at the high school. He introduced tree warden Kyle Grondell and deputy arborist Jeff Moore, who described the Lake Chauncey proposal as aimed at cooling a mapped heat-island area and supporting environmental justice goals.

Kyle told the board the grant would fund planting and establishment maintenance for trees that will reach at least 25 feet at maturity. The proposed species list is restricted to native deciduous trees and excludes pines or other evergreens because the project will rely largely on lower-cost bare-root stock required by the grant. If approved, the grant application is for about $100,000; the project would be no-cost to the town if the award is received and state reviewers approve the selected species.

Board members asked about siting near roads and playing fields, salt tolerance and coordination with the recreation department; Kyle said locations were vetted with recreation staff, utility checks were done, and species will be selected to avoid conflicts. The town will run a public poll (per grant requirements) allowing residents to help choose tree types from a state-approved list.

The board moved and approved the planting request contingent on receiving the grant. No detailed vote tally was recorded in the public transcript.

Next steps: the town will complete the grant acceptance process if awarded, finalize the tree-species list with the state, publish the public poll for species selection, and coordinate planting with the recreation and public-works schedules.