Tewksbury Select Board accepts Peace Abbey statue, tables town counsel access policy

TEWKSBURY -- June 9, 2026, Tewksbury Select Board accepts Annie Sullivan statue, commits to Flock Safety public hearing at June 23 meeting. The board unanimously accepted a donation of a bronze statue depicting Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller from Louis Randa, founder of the Peace Abbey in Sherborn, presented by Town Historian Nancy Reed with a letter of support from the Helen Keller Foundation in Tuscumbia, Alabama; the statue's permanent display location remains undecided. Two residents, Dustin Weir, of 426 Chandler Street, and Ann Calvin, of 142 Maryland Road, pressed the board on the town's Flock Safety license plate reader contract, with Calvin citing "critical vulnerabilities" still listed in the National Vulnerability Database as of the meeting date and warning that the cameras may be generating close to a million data points per year on residents. Chair Eric Ryder confirmed Flock Safety will appear on the June 23 agenda alongside Police Chief Columbus and a company representative. A proposed town counsel access policy was tabled unanimously after member James F. Mackey III distributed a competing draft, arguing the policy as written conflated staff reporting lines with elected board members' rights. The board also approved town counsel invoices totaling $9,605 and a full slate of board and committee reappointments.