UPDATE: PLEASE Attend Annual Town Meeting! Warrant Article 23 that is likely to be brought up on the 2nd night of Annual Town Meeting, May 10th, at 7:45 pm, but in order to make sure that happens, we need people to attend the first night also, Monday May 9th for a procedural vote to make sure Article 23 is discussed on May 10th towards the beginning of the night! Click below for more information on this property and this process.

Click here for images of wildlife and tracks found on adjacent and nearby land!

We need your help! Once a piece of land is developed there is no going back. The landscape is altered, environmental resiliency is diminished, water resources are impacted, wildlife is displaced, and recreational opportunities are lost. 

The Town of Boxborough’s last major conservation purchase was in 2002, and between 2000 and 2020 the number of households grew by 22%. Boxborough now has the opportunity to acquire 21 acres of beautiful and environmentally significant forest upland on Sargent Road. As in the past, the Boxborough Conservation Trust is stepping up to assist the Town to conserve this resource.

A developer plans to buy 95 and 105 Sargent Road for $1.25 million and build at least five new homes. Since the land is under the State’s Chapter 61 program of tax relief for forestry the Town has the right of first refusal at that price. While it is possible to partially fund a Town purchase through limited development, the Trust is advocating for 100% open space preservation and will assist the Town with accessing funding sources. The deadline for Town action is short, however, and the purchase must be approved at a Town Meeting in May.

The price tag is big and our property tax burden has been increasing, but new homes bring additional Town costs that need to be balanced against the cost of the lost environmental benefits if this land is developed. Consistent with the Boxborough Conservation Trust’s mission to “preserve and protect Boxborough’s undeveloped land,” the Trust’s Board has committed $100,000 in existing funds to our Sargent Road Conservation Campaign. We are determined to raise another $100,000 and, thanks to 100% Board member participation and several very generous donor commitments, we have $50,000 in matching funds available.

UPDATE! As of April 7, we have reached 95% of our match goal, thanks to generous friends and neighbors! Help us reach and surpass this goal!

Please join us in this urgent conservation effort by donating now so we can take advantage of the match and double your donation. All funds we raise will support this purchase and lessen the taxpayer burden. If the purchase does not pass at a Town Meeting or otherwise fails to occur, you may choose to have your gift returned or to donate it to the Boxborough Conservation Trust. Thank you!