Town of Wendell, Massachusetts

Open Space Committee

Resources, and Useful Links

Draft Chapters and Sections of the revised Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) are now available for download.

A copy of the 2002 Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) is now available for download at 2002 Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP).

A copy of the 2002 Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) is available for loan at the Wendell Free Library. For further information about the OSRP, please contact the Open Space Committee.

Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust

North Quabbin Woods Forestry, wood products and recreation.

"Conservation and Land Use Planning with Mass. Chapter 61 Laws"

"Losing Ground: At What Cost?" (3rd edition) This report sounds the alarm: development in the Commonwealth is now occurring at the rate of 40 acres each day! And when you factor-in the "hidden" impacts of additional roads and sections of building lots which appear un-developed, the figure is an even more alarming: 78 acres per day.

It is no surprise that Massachusetts ranks third in the nation in population density.

We strongly recommend that you check out this very accessible, concise and important report. The maps and graphics clearly reveal that sprawl and buildout is steadily moving towards us, both from the south straight up the Connecticut River Valley, and from the east in a wide swath that extends far west of Rte. 495. (Follow this link and read it on the web, download it, or request a free copy.)

PAST EVENTS hosted by the Wendell Open Space Committee

Land Protection: Now or Never..... Forever

The public is invited and encouraged to attend a presentation on Land Protection strategies by Bob Wilber (Director of Land Protection, Mass. Audubon).

Wednesday, May 12, 2004 7:00 p.m. at the Wendell Town Hall (located at the south end of the Town Common in Wendell Center)

The rate of development across the commonwealth is unprecedented: 40 acres of land are lost everyday to development - that's more than one-and-a-half acres each hour! That figure jumps to an even more alarming 78-acres lost, when "hidden impacts" such as new roads are factored-in.

Increasing housing demands and powerful development interests are the forces driving this accelerated consumption of unprotected open lands. (Nationwide, Massachusetts now ranks as the 3rd most-densely-populated state.)

It's important to get the "big picture" statewide to really start to grasp the current crisis, and the steadily-increasing pressures threatening unprotected lands in our rural region. That pressure is already being felt in some neighboring towns, where there have been very large surges in new residential construction, just over the past two years.

Come and learn more about these issues, and about the strategic role being played by Mass Audubon's Whetstone Wood Sanctuary in Wendell. You will also learn about open space protection strategies and what you can do personally, locally and statewide to save open space and protect Nature.