Letter to the Editor: Veterans Memorial Should Not Change 'Rural, Historic Beauty' of Wenham Village

To the editor:

While many of us are aware and very much in favor of a Veteran’s War Memorial being planned for Wenham, many of us missed the planning process.

Therefore, two things that are going to happen as a result of the current approved design may have escaped your notice:

1. The line of beautiful, established white pines across 1A from the Wenham Fire Station and Post Office are going to be removed. 

2. A good portion of the car barn lot (the open field behind the trees, across from First Church) is going to be paved.

This is going to have a dramatic effect on the overall look and feel of Wenham village center, which is going to be much less tree-lined and green.

Even if the Veteran’s War Memorial includes a landscaping plan that replaces the current trees, the memorial and any landscaping is not yet funded. To take out the current trees in advance of a green plan for our town seems premature.

There is a public meeting regarding the scheduled tree removal on Tuesday March 19 at 7 p.m. at the Board of Selectman’s Room at Wenham Town Hall.

A prominent, thoughtful, and well-deserved Memorial for our veterans need not change the rural, historic beauty of Wenham’s village center.

Amy Starr

Pleasant Street, Wenham