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Health & Fitness

Pat Brown is running for the Sudbury Board of Selectmen

My name is Pat Brown, and I’m running for the Sudbury Board of Selectmen. 

Our family moved to Sudbury in 1994, attracted by the town’s quiet rural beauty and its excellent school system.   Our two sons were educated in the Sudbury Public Schools, and both have graduated from Lincoln-Sudbury.   In 2004 I volunteered for my first position in Town Government and was appointed to the Rail Trail Conversion Advisory Committee. I was elected to the Sudbury Planning Board in 2012. 

The expansion of the Board of Selectmen to five members, adopted as the result of a citizen initiative, has been the most exciting development in town politics in years. It presents the opportunity for fresh ideas and to bring new energy to long-deferred goals.  Three of the issues that I’d focus on are:

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1)  Sudbury needs to control its destiny by reaching our 40B goals.  Until we’ve reached the 10% affordable housing goal, we are vulnerable to hostile development that bypasses local zoning. We need to plan our development to control it.

2)  Sudbury needs a greenway, not a highway.  The Town of Sudbury could be using our rail right of way for recreation today, if we weren’t fixated on building a MassDOT-style roadway through the woods. We can create a greenway that reflects the rural character of Sudbury for a lower cost in a shorter timeframe.  Let’s just do it.

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3)  Sudbury needs to decide issues, not just study them.  We have too many issues that we’ve been “studying”—for decades.  At some point we must make a decision even if not everyone will be happy with it.   We need clear goals and a fair and open process for gathering information.  However, when gathering information results in an answer that we don’t want, we can’t just continue to study.  We need to decide and move on.   

There’s a lot going in town, and many other issues to consider.  I look forward to a lively, respectful and demanding discussion during this campaign—and to earning your vote on March 31.  Watch for my website at patbrownforsudbury.com 

Pat (for Patricia) Brown

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