Which Way Winchendon
John H. White
October 8, 2006
Someone said the only constant is change. He/she was right. Things are going to change. Winchendon is going to change. With adequate planning we can channel those changes in the ways that will make Winchendon better.
I want to talk a little about change in Winchendon. Historically, there have been a lot of changes. The first settlers tried to make some existence from the land. While it was Ashburnham, not Winchendon, I read a story in a book about the history of New England agriculture. It told of a young man who purchased some land in that town. This was the 1740s or 1750s, the same period when Winchendon was first settled. The first year, he came up in the spring, made himself some sort of lean-to to live in and set to work at clearing the land. In the fall he went back to his home town further east and took a job for the winter. Something about working in a brickyard if I recall. The next spring he came up to the hills again and worked that summer getting his land up to where it could produce and built a log cabin. Went back home in the fall. The third spring he married a young lady and they headed to his land with some furniture she had acquired and settled there. This is an example of the first change in Winchendon: from wilderness to subsistence agriculture.
With the opening of the west early in the nineteenth century local agriculture began a gradual decline that has now nearly reached bottom: there is little left. Farming produced a far better return in the west than on the rocky hillsides, thin soil, and short growing season of Winchendon. With available waterpower and in 1847 the railroad, manufacturing become an important business. Since travel other than rail was still difficult, many local stores were established to serve a growing population.
When in the twentieth century good timber became scarce, electricity had replaced waterpower and trucks and cars the railroad, manufacturing declined as well. Many of the local stores also succumbed to the greater mobility of people who could now shop the greater variety of goods available at lower prices in larger centers.
Winchendon has been left largely a bedroom community for people who work and shop elsewhere, many of whom travel toward the eastern part of the state every day. After almost fifty years following the great depression, Winchendon's population began to grow again as land become more affordable here than in towns to the east. The newcomers have been largely people of moderate means. Those who can afford high value homes are still able to find property nearer to their workplaces, shopping, and cultural sites.
Since local government depends heavily on the property tax for support, local services have to be funded from that source. Education, public safety and roads are the big ticket items. Other claims on revenue are health; social services; library; capital expenditures; and, of necessity, the general government costs that underlie everything else. If a home houses schoolchildren, the cost of educating the children will exceed the taxes that can be realized from the home unless it is a very high value one. This is true even after state aid to education is factored in. The town needs tax revenue from commercial property that does not produce school children.
It is painfully obvious that there are major differences of opinion about change in the future. We have some people that want Winchendon to again be a manufacturing town. Many of these are very long time residents that remember how it was. Then we have newer residents and some old timers as well. that like the small town atmosphere with nearby open land, elbow room and lots of fresh air. They like things just the way they are and seem to think they can keep them that way. We have other people who want to see more stores and cultural amenities while preserving much of what we have. Some people are pushing to develop tourism as a replacement for manufacturing and the reconstruction of facilities that will attract tourists. Others seem to want growth of any kind, be it housing or commercial. And some people, including me, feel we need to thread a careful path among these proposals so that Winchendon can again be a thriving community.
We have even seen groups organized for or usually against a particular proposal. I borrowed the name of this talk from one, though there is no other connection to that once active group.
We are unlikely to see a rebirth of local manufacturing. Much of it seems to be headed to China and other underdeveloped countries. Winchendon's small town atmosphere is worth keeping, at least insofar as we can. We also need to improve our infrastructure to accommodate what we already have as well as the growth we seem destined to get. We made the start way back in 2001 with the adoption of a new master plan. While not nearly all the things that were envisioned have been accomplished, some important ones have been done. One was the wastewater treatment plant upgrade. DONE. (I note by a New Hampshire newspaper that Jaffrey is about where we were some six year ago: An upgrade for millions of dollars is still ahead of them.) Our water filtration plant is on line and I have heard fewer water complaints recently.
Since I have taken a seat on the Planning Board, zoning revision has been an important focus. We passed the revision last May and I think we are beginning to see some positive effects. We have had several plans laying out smaller lots near the center of town. I would much rather see new homes here than in the boonies. With less land involved they can be more affordable. And the cost to the town of servicing them with public safety, roads, and schools will be less than if the same homes were built further out.
I don't expect to see Wal-Mart locate in Winchendon. They have two stores within a dozen miles and there just isn't enough population in the area to justify one in between.
Home Depot has proposed a store in Rindge. That town denied them and the matter is in court. I won't dare guess the outcome. It would appear the company feels they need another location in this area. Winchendon, with our revised zoning, could accommodate them just off route 140. While the town kept residential zoning for that part of 140 south of Brian's Place, most of the area to the north is zoned commercial. And the area across from Brian's has a considerable area that would make a good location. No wetlands either though a road will be needed. I understand the land can be purchased. For those commercially zoned parts of route 140 and route 202 south even thought the commercial zone does not go far back, a little noticed change in zoning allows the zoning board of appeals to allow the commercial area to extend back as far as is necessary as long as it does not adversely affect the neighbors. More than one large development is possible.
One member of the Backyard Fence forum was concerned about the lot at the near end of 140 that was cut over. The owner said the cutting was part of a deal that didn't come out as he wanted. Though economic conditions appear to have held them up for a few years, Mathieu Ford is now preparing to move their dealership there. Site plan approval has already been granted. I understand Mathieu has already committed to sell their Central Street location to a chain retailer. Another pharmacy, I understand. They will build a new substantial store though the planning department has seen no proposal yet. The net effect will be more tax revenue for Winchendon from two new substantial commercial facilities.
The new Open Space and Recreation plan for the town is just about done and ready to be submitted to the state. The planning and development department submitted a Commonwealth Capital plan and received a very high score based on the planning work in various areas that has been done. This will help the town receive more grants from the state. Planning and Development is already working on an update of our Master Plan. Since our present plan is more than five years old, it is needed.
Winchendon is going to change. It needs to. We are barely a viable community financially. We have to get enough tax revenue to fund the public services our citizens need. Since residential development, unless it is high end residential (and McMansions are not in prospect), does not pay its way by providing enough taxes to cover the municipal costs, we need commercial or industrial development in addition. That development will also produce jobs, which our residents need closer to home. Granted many, if not most, retail jobs do not pay particularly well, but every one helps.
We are going to see more residential development. True, I think this is likely to slow down for a while until the country works its way out of real estate overbuilding and speculation. But in the end we have what towns to the east do not: much available land. We have open land that can support homes without changing the character of our town and also land to preserve as open space so that our small town character can continue.
We (or at least I) am seeking to discourage residential developments in the far outlying areas. I ran into some trouble with that idea when I forcefully objected to a proposed subdivision in the most remote part of town. So remote that one must drive a half mile through Gardner to get to it. At midday of a fine day a few weeks ago, it took our ambulance 10 minutes to reach the area for an emergency. I was listening to the scanner. Eventually, most people seemed to think this a poor area for a subdivision.
Rather we are trying to encourage home-building where water and sewer are available. While all building is off, the Planning Board is seeing a number of new small lots being laid out in the area we feel is best suited for development. These are locations which will be within walkable distance of downtown. Homes on these smaller lots should be less expensive to own and, because they are centrally located, the cost of public services like police, fire, ambulance, road maintenance, and school transportation (maybe even walking distance for many kids) will be lower than for a similar home far from the center of town. True, the actual cost of education will be the same, but we will take whatever cost reductions we can.
Some people argue we don't want lower value housing because it will attract a less desirable class of people. Well, I suppose it may. But it will also offer housing opportunities for our elderly and for young families just starting out. Opportunities to live in the town they have called home for years that they might not otherwise have. How many times have we heard of people who find they cannot afford to live here any longer? Providing for lower cost homes should help. We also now allow mixed uses, commercial and residential, as well as buildings with up to four apartments in the downtown area. This can help with the demand for rental units.
Fortunately there are some tools available to help keep the inevitable residential development from ruining our rural atmosphere. One is the concept of open space residential development, known by its acronym, OSRD. We have had it in our zoning bylaw for several years under the name of flexible residential development. It was strengthened a little more last spring so that now such a development requires one third of the land be preserved as open space. Additional standards are included to minimize tree cutting and land grading. The use of bioretention areas or rain gardens for stormwater control will be encouraged. The overall effect will reduce the impact of these homes on the environment.
In a commercial development we will endeavor to limit the parking areas to what is needed frequently to minimize runoff. Again bioretention areas will be encouraged as will green roofs. A green roof is essentially a flat roof that is covered with soil like material in which hardy native type plants are grown. They have the advantage of slowing stormwater runoff, help to restore oxygen to the atmosphere, provide significant insulation qualities, and have twice the life expectancy of conventional roofs. I easily understand that: solar heating seems to be the worst enemy of conventional roofs. While a green roof is somewhat more costly, they should be well worthwhile.
Our challenge is to get the various disparate groups in Winchendon to work together, or at least not be completely antagonistic. I'm not sure why but our local political climate has been particularly poisonous of late. Our community needs to get beyond it. Yes, I do feel that certain persons have been and are stumbling blocks to the progress of the town. Maybe that issue can be resolved. We, as a community, need to be willingto invest in our future.
Overall, I am optimistic for Winchendon's future.