Panel Revises Day Field Farm Lease Draft

Conservation · Meeting of October 28, 2026

Westford's Conservation Commission revised a draft farm lease for Day Field and weighed longer terms for Hill Orchard. The panel favored a five-year base term with a mutual five-year extension option over a straight 10-year Day Field lease, split electricity costs roughly 60-40 by acreage, and restricted overnight irrigation to 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. to ease friction with the community garden; the revised RFP heads to the Agricultural Commission's November 2 meeting. At Hill Orchard, the agent said the town has been "outlaying costs" of roughly $7,000 a year with no farmer under contract, and members agreed to defer soil testing and pruning until a tenant is chosen, with member Jim saying, "Let the orchardist that wins the contract do the testing if he wants it." The commission also approved an order of conditions for Applewood Construction Corp. with two abstentions, a four-tree removal on Cowdrey Hill Road, and a partial certificate of compliance for Seal Harbor LLC's Groton Road project.

In the full story:

• Day Field Agricultural RFP Review
• Hill Orchard: Volunteer Season Wrap-Up and Future Management
• Open Forum
• Applewood Construction Corp., Driveway Project Near Durkee Lane
• Request for Determination of Applicability, Cowdrey Hill Road
• CRM Construction LLC, 8 Nagog Lane
• Landino, 17 Hunt Road
• Dave Guthrie, Webber Road Right-of-Way
• 7 Webber Road (DEP File 334-1901) and Binsky, 148 Stable Road
• Seal Harbor LLC, 427 and 429 Groton Road
• O'Donnell/Hernandez, 13 Fletcher Road, and December Work Scheduling Policy
• 2027-2028 Meeting Schedule
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,993 words

Source: the Conservation meeting of October 28, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.