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Town saves money on cemetery expansion

>Mountain Road project provides fill to level area

LYNDEBOROUGH – The tons of fill needed to make the expansion of South Cemetery a level area is coming from the Mountain Road project, filling two needs – getting rid of the removed dirt and gravel and saving the cemetery trustees a lot of money.

Although there are eight cemeteries in town, the South Yard is the only ac­tive one, and it is filling up. Several years ago, the trustees began planning for expanding into a 10- acre parcel north of the cemetery. The land was deeded to the town for that purpose by the state when the James A.G. Putnam Pond flood control dam was built in the early 1970s. A few years ago, the trust­ees began a long-range plan for its development.

Last year, about 2 acres behind the eastern end of the cemetery were cleared, with the sale of the lumber and chips go­ing toward the site work. Some larger trees were left in order to create a parklike appearance. The western part of the site, near Furnace Hill Road, is wetland, and that was protected.

The logging was done during August 2015 by R. Lemire and Sons Logging of Antrim. The clearing exposed a quite rough terrain that needed a lot of fill and site work. The work was overseen by Bay State Forestry Service of Newbury. The trustees ex­pected the project to take several years.

Enter the Mountain Road project, the total rebuilding of more than 3 miles of road. All of the material being removed had to be put somewhere, and it was perfect for fill at the cemetery. The town’s Highway Depart­ment hauled the material to the cemetery.

Much of the expansion area is now fairly level. A field stone wall is being built between the present section and the new.

It will still be several years before the site is needed for burials, giving the trustees time for add­ing the needed loam and landscaping and allowing the fill to settle.