Boxborough Commission Authorizes $5,000 Appraisal of Middle Road Land Facing Sale

BOXBOROUGH — April 15, 2026 — Boxborough Conservation Commission approves $5,000 to appraise an 18-acre Middle Road property before it hits the open market. The commission voted unanimously at its April 15 meeting to draw up to $5,000 from the Conservation Trust Fund to retain an independent appraiser for 276 Middle Road, an 18-acre parcel abutting Steel Farm and the town's community gardens that the owning estate is preparing to list imminently at a previously appraised value of approximately $1.4 million. Boxborough Conservation Trust representative Rita Indge and Land Stewards Coordinator Dave Barnett described the site as a priority in the town's Open Space and Recreation Plan, with member David Koonce noting the federal Forest Legacy Program could cover 75 percent of acquisition costs if the town moves quickly. The commission also rescinded and rewrote a partial Certificate of Compliance for a septic installation at 959 Hill Road, unanimously waiving a professional-engineer certification requirement and accepting a registered sanitarian's sign-off instead — a case members said exposed a gap in the commission's standard order-of-conditions language.