Summer is here!

For me, summer is popsicles and ferris wheels. And next week, the carnival comes to our town courtesy of the Lexington Lions Club which means we are officially in full summer swing. With our editor on vacation, we’re hoping you’ll take a look at some of the big stories we’ve published over the last eight weeks – take a look:

>> Our new high school: with initial cost estimates coming in over $600 million, Gerry Yurkevicz provides some important context around the new high school.

>> Town Manager Jim Malloy is retiring. What’s next for him, and for Lexington? 

>> A new monument recognizes the achievements of Lexington women, from abolitionists to astrophysicists. Learn more about both the women featured and the women who brought their stories to life. 

>> Lexington’s own Major League Baseball player Sal Frelick played his first game at Fenway Park at the end of May — playing against his childhood home team, the Red Sox. The Select Board proclaimed the day “Sal Frelick Day” in Lexington. 

>> Another LHS alum, Darnell Billings, has been appointed as the new chair of METCO, The Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity. “I am a product of the METCO program, so I can tell you that it works,” Billings says.

>> Twenty years ago, Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage. Read part one and part two of our deep dive into how Lexington was front and center during the national debate. 

>> How has Lexington changed over the last ten years? Check out our two-part series diving into our town’s changing demographics and what that means for housing costs.

This week brought new news on an issue we’ve been covering for months. As we previously reported, Minute Man National Historical Park, Walden Pond and other nearby sites are among America’s most endangered historic places due to the proposed private jet expansion at Hanscom Field. And now the developers of the proposed expansion are under new pressure to provide more information on its potential environmental impacts. The state agency responsible (Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs) reviewed the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) and found “that it does not adequately and properly comply with the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) and its implementing regulations.” The developers will be required to provide further analysis of its potential impact on aviation activity at Hanscom Field, explore additional project alternatives and mitigation measures, and provide specified additional information. Stay tuned for more of our reporting on this story.

We are a small, local non-profit and this reporting is made possible by your financial support. Next week we’ll be running our summer fundraiser – but you can get a head start by giving today. 

Thank you for everything you do for our town – 

Nicco Mele
Board Chair

Community Events and Announcements

Visit our site for our full events listings and community announcements. Please use our new forms to submit a community event or announcement and write to community@lexobserver.org with any questions.

Real Estate Listings Week of June 27, 2023

Community Announcement: Huzzah! A 295th Birthday

Huzzah! A recent Lexington Times article told us how Captain John Parker and his men […]

Letter to the Editor: Real Estate Transfer Fee & Affordable Housing

Funds raised via the proposed RETF would be applied to a local affordable housing trust […]

That’s a wrap for today. Was this roundup useful to you? What do you want to see in this email next week? Let us know, and please ask your friends to sign up and DONATE too! Reach out to lauren@lexobserver.org with tips and questions anytime. As always, you can also check out and share our website, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook pages. Thanks so much for reading and have a great weekend!