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The Community Preservation Act (CPA) allows Sudbury residents, town boards, and community organizations to propose projects for funding across open space and recreation, historic preservation, and community housing. The Community Preservation Committee reviews applications and makes recommendations for which projects should proceed to Town Meeting. Their process heats up this time of year, as they need to submit articles by the deadline for the Town Meeting warrant.
Applications for the Fiscal Year 2028 funding cycle were submitted in September 2026 and are available on the Town website HERE.
Here is an rundown of this year’s CPA applications:
- Wayside Inn Pedestrian Connectivity Project: A resident requested $220,000 to fund a feasibility study, survey, and preliminary engineering for a pedestrian route serving the Wayside Inn Historic District. The study compares connection alternatives along Route 20 and Wayside Inn Road but does not include final design or construction.
- The Wayside Inn Signage Project: This $65,000 proposal aims to replace and update parking, wayfinding, and historic signage across the property. It will also introduce new signs with QR codes for multilingual historical information to enhance visitor accessibility.
- Regional Housing Services Office (RHSO) Membership Fee: The Town is requesting $41,500 to cover half of its FY2028 membership fee for the RHSO. This a recurring annual application.
- Revolutionary War Cemetery Restoration: The Sudbury Historical Commission is requesting $48,000 to repair critically damaged historic gravestones, mitigate a hazardous tree, and restore the boundary wall and iron fence.
- Rail Trail Connections Study: This $82,500 study proposed by the Planning & Community Development Department will identify and prioritize feasible pedestrian and bicycle connections to the Mass Central and Bruce Freeman Rail Trails. The study evaluates access points from civic destinations to create a priority ranking for future infrastructure funding.
- National Campaign Fitness Court: The Assistant Town Manager requests $300,000 to install a free, all-season outdoor Fitness Court at Haskell Field. Designed for users ages 14 and older, the amenity replaces outdated equipment and provides a space for body-weight exercises and wellness programming.
- Housing Trust Allocation: The Sudbury Housing Trust is requesting $900,000 in flexible funding to acquire, create, and preserve affordable housing. These funds allow the Trust to act quickly to purchase and convert market-rate homes when suitable properties become available.
- Hosmer House Archival Preservation Project (Phase II): The Sudbury Historical Commission requests $111,600 to continue cataloging, rehousing, and creating a database for the Hosmer family’s historic collections. This next phase secures vulnerable primary sources and improves public access to Florence Hosmer’s artwork and archives.
- Historic Districts Evaluation: This $100,000 study proposed by the Planning & Community Development Department will research and map properties within Sudbury’s five historic districts. The evaluation aims to determine the historical significance of current boundaries and explore ways to reduce regulatory burdens on non-historic structures located within the districts.
- Haynes Playground & Adjacent Pavement Area Resurfacing: The Combined Facilities Department is requesting $530,000 to replace the failed safety surfacing and deteriorated pavement at Josiah Haynes Elementary School. The project includes drainage improvements and a new shade structure to increase comfort and extend the lifespan of the surfacing.
- Goodnow Library Archival Storage: The Goodnow Library requested $174,200 to construct a dedicated, climate-controlled storage space for its Local History collections. This project will safely house vulnerable archival materials and artifacts, ensuring their long-term physical preservation according to archival best practices.
- Feeley Field Bathrooms, ADA and Parking Area: The Assistant Town Manager is requesting $461,475 to modernize the aging bathroom facilities and improve ADA accessibility at Feeley Field. The project will also repave the existing parking area to create safer, more functional access to the recreational amenities.
- Davis Field Field Improvements: The Town requests $2,800,000 to transform a 29-acre property into two or three regulation-size natural grass rectangular athletic fields. This project includes grading, drainage, parking, and accessibility improvements, providing field capacity and allowing the Town to rotate and rest other heavily used grass fields.
- Bruce Freeman Rail Trail Ph. 3 and Mass Central Rail Trail: The Planning & Community Development Department is requesting $250,000 to support the final 1.5 miles of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. The funds will cover the design of a new parking lot near the Diamond intersection, the acquisition of necessary temporary and permanent easements, and the addition of amenities like water filling stations, wayfinding graphics, and historic railroad equipment restoration.