Last Saturday kicked off our first work party of 2026. I have been spending a lot of time speaking with John and Dave about plans for the year ahead, and Koulas Farm is a major focus. One of the big needs going forward is a good-quality lawn mower and a reliable way to get it […]

This week the Cooking Buckets Sugar House team will be rigging up sap tap lines at their Sunny Meadow Farm site. Ten years ago, Town Meeting approved a 10-year lease to allow Cooking Buckets to try something that was, and still is, new and experimental for this region. A plantation or bush-style approach to maple […]

Looking forward to the next Eagle Scout Boards of Review. Thursday, January 15, 2026 6:45 pm Never having been a Scout myself, you would think this is something I really should not be doing. Yet I have worked with Scouts for over 20 years, and my experience with community service projects and builds is extensive, […]

Over the years, several people have shared local knowledge about Heart Pond and where ice is often thinner due to springs, groundwater movement, or subtle current. The attached image is a user-made reference map that marks areas that have historically been reported as thin ice. This map does not guarantee accuracy. It is not official. […]

As the year draws to an end, Koulas Farm has been, at different times, exciting, depressing, hopeful, and a bit of a wild ride. If you had told me in January of last year that this much work would be done, I probably would have said yes. By summer, it felt like everything we had […]

A few questions have arisen about cross-country skiing at Koulas Farm, and the honest answer is yes and no. Yes, there is a designated route, and it has now been marked. With a bit more snow, it will be passable and enjoyable. No, it is not perfect yet. One short section near the sledding hill […]

Heart Pond is a well-loved but complicated site, and with ADA upgrades finally moving forward, it is important to understand the full context of the property, its history, and the real constraints that exist there. The town GIS map helps explain why this location is challenging. The park floods frequently, and a major reason is […]

Last night I was asked to speak to Troop 75 about service in our community. That is something I guess I have become an expert on, at least through experience. For me, service was something passed down informally. I was raised with the idea that you give back when you can and you treat people […]

Well, the COSS main website at https://www.chelmsfordoss.org has quietly turned into the home for all the “stories” that have been showing up on the COSS Facebook page. Some are short reflections, some are deep dives into history, some are project updates, and some are just fun seasonal moments that make living in Chelmsford special. Facebook […]

Looking out at the snow today, my mind raced back to the winter of 2017. It was not a particularly historic winter overall, but for COSS it was a significant one. A series of heavy storms moved through, bringing snow. Not just snow, but wet, heavy snow. The Cheys have three greenhouses at Sunny Meadow. […]