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The Select Board must make a decision in the coming months about the future use of the Town-owned property known as Liberty Ledge. Liberty Ledge is the home of Camp Sewataro. After speaking with many residents about this it appears that many residents really don’t know what Camp Sewataro really is and what Liberty Ledge could be.
Before the Town purchased Liberty Ledge, Camp Sewataro was a private summer day camp operating on private property. The camp owner and the property owner were in the same family. The day camp marketed itself to affluent families in Greater Boston and Metro West. Liberty Ledge contained a camp headquarters house and four residential houses and a barn with a residential apartment on the second floor that were rented out by the property owner. For FY2019 (the year before the Town purchased the property), the property owner paid $201,840 in property taxes to the Town.
Today, Camp Sewataro is a Town-subsidized private business operating on Town-owned property. The Camp Operator is a single owner LLC with a single manager. The LLC owner and the manager are the same individual. The day camp still markets itself to affluent families. The tuition for the first two-week session in 2027 is $2,005 and it is $2,225 for each of the next 3 two-week sessions. During the 2026 camp season, about 2/3rds of the campers did not live in Sudbury. During the camp season (June 1 – August 31), public access to Liberty Ledge is severely limited. The residential units on the property are controlled by the Camp Operator and do not generate any rental income to the Town. The property generates no real estate tax income to the Town.
How is the private camp “Town-subsidized”?
The Town paid 100% of the cost to purchase Liberty Ledge. The camp was in full operation immediately before the Town’s purchase, and, as part of the purchase, the Town acquired most of the camp equipment left over from the just-ended season along with all the camp’s intellectual property, including the camp name, logo, customer lists, marketing materials and all the good will that the prior camp owner built over many years. The Town furnished all of these camp assets at no charge to the Camp Operator to start up its business. Whatever equipment the Camp Operator purchases, including replacement of equipment the Town provided, belongs to the Camp Operator and is paid for as a camp operating expense while reducing the Town’s revenue share.
Here’s an excerpt from a recent analysis I ran on the financials:
The Camp Operator has received DOUBLE the income that the Town has received with minimal capital investment on its part. In addition, the camp infrastructure has a limited useful life. That useful life was already depreciating prior to the Town’s purchase of the property, and the Camp Operator continues to use up the remaining useful life of these assets without any obligation to refurbish or replace any of it.
What about the camp scholarships?
The Camp Operator claims additional financial benefit to the Town through its scholarship program for resident children. However, the scholarships are tuition discounts, so the Town receives no actual financial benefit. The camp operator agreed to give up to 200 scholarships per season (50 per two week session) for the right to increase daily enrollment, but only gave a total of 49 in 2026. To qualify for a scholarship, household income must be under $100,000, or under $130,000 if the household size is 5+. According to the 495/MetroWest Partnership, the 2025 median household income in Sudbury was $234,634. Very few households in Sudbury qualify for this scholarship.
What could be done with Liberty Ledge?
Liberty Ledge consists of nearly 45 acres and 25 structures (including the houses and barn), plus courts, fields and swimming facilities. The Town has its own summer day camp for Sudbury children at the Fairbank Community Center, but it cannot use the Liberty Ledge facilities. The Town has no outdoor swimming facilities for resident use throughout the summer. The property is hardly used outside the summer season. The Town needs more revenue for its operations, and the Town Manager has already forecast tax overrides in the coming years. Liberty Ledge is a valuable Town asset that could serve many purposes besides a Town-subsidized private business.
We need to understand everything Liberty Ledge could do to benefit the whole Town. An independent, professional land use study should help determine how to maximize the property’s value for the Town as a whole. To do anything less is a disservice to Town residents.