Town reaches preservation deal with Sisters of Mercy Northeast to save 229 acres of land
CUMBERLAND — A $1.5 million land preservation deal between the town and members of the Sisters of Mercy Northeast to preserve 229 pristine acres of woods and open space off Wrentham Road for future generations was the major news story in Cumberland in 2018.
The 243-acre Sisters of Mercy property is located in the northeastern corner of Cumberland historically known as Grant’s Mill, between Miscoe Lake and the Diamond Hill Reservoir. The Sisters of Mercy, who purchased the first tract of land in 1913, negotiated with the town and its partners to purchase the property and create “Mercy Woods,” a 229-acre conservation project that will include 17.5 acres for new practice ballfields.
The overall property is home to the New Dawn Center convent for the sisters, a dormitory known as Mercy Lodge, and the Sisters of Mercy Northeast Administrative Offices in a 40,000-square-foot building, which all have been divided from the original 242.5-acre parcel and are not included in the town’s 229-acre purchase. The town does have an option to acquire those properties if they are no longer needed by the Sisters of Mercy at some point in the future.
The land purchase was the town’s biggest since the 500-acre Monastery property acquisition in 1968.
Here’s a look back at what else made news in Cumberland in 2018:
• Cumberland voters vote incumbent Mayor William Murray out of office and elect new mayor Jeffrey Mutter.
• Work on the town’s new Public Safety Complex at 1379 Diamond Hill Road nears the finish line.
The project’s general contractor, the Calson Construction Corp. of Johnston, completes the exterior of the 22,000-square-foot, single-story building, including the installation of doors and windows, and is now working on finish work projects inside the structure, including wall painting, cabinet work, and utilities installation.
• Cumberland and neighboring Lincoln merge animal control services, with Cumberland moving its services to Lincoln’s newly-renovated animal shelter on Wellington Road near the North Central State Airport. Cumberland is leasing space at the Lincoln shelter – which recently underwent a $300,000 renovation – and will pay pay $1,000 a month to Lincoln as part of a one-year trial agreement.
• The Cumberland School District establishes a stakeholder committee to study later start times for the high school beginning in the 2019-2020 school year, citing research that says giving students a chance to get more sleep would benefit student health.
• Veteran Animal Control Officer Paul H. Rose retires after 29 years of service to the town. He is succeeded by new ACO Jason Stacki.
• The Cumberland Town Council votes to authorize Murray to enter into a cooperative agreement with the National Parks Service that would create a partnership on future programs, activities and projects within the newly-established Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park, which includes the Ashton Historic District in Cumberland.
• The Cumberland School Department’s bus company, Durham School Services, comes under fire by school officials for late school buses across the district. After receiving warnings from the School Committee, bus service improves.
• The Diamond Hill roundabout project begins. The RIDOT’s plan, which was given local approval by town officials in 2016, is to construct two round- abouts: one where the I-295 exit ramps meet Diamond Hill Road to the south of I-295, and one to the north. The project also includes road widening at Industrial Drive, along with widening, intersection realignment and traffic signal modifications at Chapel Four Corners, which is the intersection of Bear Hill and Angell roads.
• The Community Elementary School unveils its new special place classroom and schoolyard habitat, a non-traditional classroom that incorporates outdoor learning within the curriculum.
The outdoor classroom features a amphitheater for whole-class instruction; a read-aloud circle for wholegroup discussion; an area for peaceful reflection and remembrance; and opportunities for small-group collaboration.
• The Town Council adopts a revised conservation and management plan for the town-owned Monastery grounds that reaffirms the town’s perpetual protection of the 500-acre property off Diamond Hill Road. The new Monastery conservation and management plan is a complete reworking of the 2004 Monastery master plan, which served as an important foundation document for conservation and management of the property for the past 13 years.