"It is not maintained, and it is unsafe." In July, Select Board member Michael Bettencourt used those words for the roughly 13.7 acres off Forest Circle known as Forest Ridge, as Winchester News reported. Construction debris and discarded car parts sit on the property. The land also borders the Middlesex Fells Reservation, and Winchester's Conservation Commission wants to bring it back to Town Meeting on Thursday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m.
In May, Town Meeting members turned down borrowing of up to $3 million to buy the same land. Since then, the appraisal has come in lower and grant money is lined up. A private buyer now has the land under agreement, which pushes the town toward eminent domain. By the Conservation Commission chair's own description, though, eminent domain is the route where the largest grant on the table may not be usable.
The same land, a different set of facts
On May 4, Town Meeting defeated Article 35 by 59 to 105, short of the two-thirds it needed. That article would have authorized borrowing up to $3 million to buy the Forest Circle land plus a quarter-acre parcel in Stoneham from the Shannon Investment Trust. The Finance Committee opposed it and estimated the town would give up $3 million to $4 million in property tax revenue. Winchester News covered the spring vote and returned to the story when the bid came back in August.
Here is how the main facts have shifted between May and the fall:
| Spring Town Meeting, May 2026 | Fall Town Meeting, Nov. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Appraisal | October 2025 appraisal, about $3.63 million | June 2026 appraisal, $2.85 million |
| Developer interest | None reported at the time | Bell Point LLC has the land under agreement |
| Process | Request came outside the fall CPA cycle | Revised application filed June 15, inside the cycle |
| Acquisition method | Borrowing to purchase | Draft articles cover eminent domain and CPA acquisition |
| Outside money | Not part of the spring article | $250,000 state earmark, $27,900 for related costs, two grants pending |
The spring figure in the table comes from subtracting: the June appraisal was about $780,000 below the October 2025 number. Select Board Chair Anthea Brady said in the spring that voting a $3 million ceiling handed the seller the price. The appraisal has since dropped below that ceiling.
Why the lower number is tied to the developer
According to Winchester News, the June appraisal named the property's highest and best use as sale to an investor or developer for residential subdivision at the highest density allowed. So the appraisal describes a buyer who would build, and that kind of buyer showed up. When the Conservation Commission contacted the owner in June to negotiate, it learned the land was under agreement with Bell Point LLC.
Commission Chair Tracy Olson told the Select Board on Aug. 24 that Bell Point builds in eastern Massachusetts and New Hampshire and is permitting a 36-lot single-family development in Essex. She showed a map of two nearby properties on Forest Street and Forest Circle. She said the developer had approached their owners, and those lots could provide road access plus the turning radius for emergency vehicles that had blocked earlier development concepts. As of that meeting, Olson described no filed plan for Forest Ridge itself, and the Select Board took no action.
The spring debate was about whether to buy land nobody else was bidding on. In its report on this fall's CPA slate, the Daily Times Chronicle noted that during the spring vote no developers appeared interested, while now, according to the Conservation Commission, a developer has made an offer.
The grant that depends on how the land is acquired
The land is under agreement with a private buyer, so a negotiated sale to the town is no longer simple. That is why eminent domain is now part of the discussion. At its Sept. 8 meeting, the Conservation Commission voted unanimously by roll call to support acquisition by eminent domain. The draft fall warrant dated Sept. 11 carried two articles on it:
- Draft Article 20 would authorize the Select Board, at the Conservation Commission's request, to take the roughly 13.66 acres at Forest Circle by eminent domain for conservation, open space and passive recreation.
- Draft Article 21 would acquire the same acreage, plus a parcel at Fallon Road in Stoneham, by gift, purchase or eminent domain under the Community Preservation Act, with a permanent restriction recorded on the land.
In the draft, both articles were marked "Placeholder pending committee vote," and neither named a price. Either one, whether a taking, borrowing, or both, would need a two-thirds Town Meeting vote, the same bar the spring article missed.
The funding plan relies on two pending grants. The Conservation Commission has applied for a state land acquisition grant of up to $425,000 and a federal Land and Water Conservation Fund grant of up to $1 million. Winchester News reported that grant managers indicated both awards were likely, with decisions expected in October or November. The bond depends on which grants come through:
- State grant only: a projected bond of $2.23 million, with annual debt service of about $135,000.
- State and federal grants: a projected bond of $1.23 million, with annual debt service of about $75,000.
Olson's August presentation added a limit. She said CPA money may be used to pay an owner fair market value in a taking, and that 10 projects in the statewide CPA database used eminent domain to acquire land. She also said state grant money could be applied to a taking, but federal money could be used only with the owner's agreement.
Taken together, those details point to the central issue for Nov. 5. The lower bond figure counts on $1 million in federal money. Under the rule Olson described, that money applies only if the owner agrees to the transaction. Eminent domain is the tool for acquiring land without that agreement. If the town takes the land rather than buying it, the bond is likely to be closer to the $2.23 million figure than to $1.23 million. Winchester News did not report which funding scenario the final articles are built around.
The Stoneham piece works under its own rule. Olson said the town can't take that parcel because it sits outside Winchester, but it could buy it directly with earmark money.
Where the Community Preservation committee stands
Christina Marshall chairs the Winchester Committee for Community Preservation. In May, she was the one committee member who voted against the plan. She told Town Meeting her objection was procedural and not about whether to buy the land: the request had come outside the fall cycle, when CPA projects are weighed against each other. The revised application went through that fall cycle this summer.
Her committee still hasn't fully committed. The Daily Times Chronicle reported that Marshall told the Select Board the committee would provide a statement of support but wanted to hear from the Select Board and Town Meeting before committing to any financing. That report described the Conservation Commission's article as an eminent domain request costing about $3 million.
Forest Ridge is also competing with a full slate of CPA projects. In the same report, 13 applications came in, one was ruled ineligible, three were withdrawn, and eight moved forward to the committee's warrant article. Those eight would spend $925,000 in CPA funds on:
- Leonard Field upgrade and restoration, including demolition and upgrades to the pavilion
- Packer Ellis Tennis Courts, Phase III
- McDonald Tennis Court resurfacing
- Nutile Field Master Plan
- Lincoln School shade structure
- Public park tree canopy improvements
- Town Hall auditorium seating
- Tri-Community Greenway improvements
The Leonard Field pavilion and the Packer Ellis courts get most of that money. The Forest Ridge figure under discussion is roughly three times the size of the whole eight-project slate. That is why the committee wants to hear from the Select Board and Town Meeting before committing to financing.
What the land is, and the trail beside it
The Conservation Commission's application lays out the ecological case for the parcel: forested upland knolls of white pine and oak, a cattail marsh edged with red maple swamp, few invasive plants, and a wildlife corridor running from the Fells toward the Aberjona River. The draft warrant language would limit the land to conservation, open space and passive recreation.
Winchester already has an established way into that part of the Fells. The state's Middlesex Fells Reservation trail map shows the Long Pond Nature Trail as a yellow-blazed, 1.7-mile, pedestrian-only loop. The map says Winchester Trails developed it, with sponsorship from the Winchester School Department and the Conservation Commission, the same commission now asking for Forest Ridge. According to the map, the Long Pond parking area gives Winchester access to the nature trail and scenic areas. It also warns visitors not to use Winchester Reservoir roads or trails posted as no public access.
The open questions before Nov. 5
As of Oct. 12, news coverage hadn't settled several facts that will shape the vote. Winchester News reported the final warrant was due back before the Select Board on Sept. 28. A later Winchester News story cited Town Manager Christopher Senior's report saying the board would vote on and publish the warrant Oct. 5. Whether Draft Articles 20 and 21 kept that numbering, and which committee recommendations replaced the "placeholder" notes, should be checked in the final warrant before Town Meeting. Decisions on the state and federal grants were expected in October or November, so the federal answer may arrive after members have already voted. Bell Point's status is as of Olson's Aug. 24 presentation, when no plan had been filed for the parcel.
The voting threshold is the one fact that hasn't changed. A taking, a borrowing, or both would need a two-thirds vote of Town Meeting members, the same margin the spring article fell short of. Winchester News has reported that if the acquisition goes forward, closing is projected for early 2027.
If you'd like to go over how open space, Town Meeting decisions, and timing affect a move in or out of Winchester, Neran Rohra can help you put together a clear, step-by-step plan. Let's connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
