[MassHistPres] [External] Re: Public way

[Betty Slade]

The river surrounding a historic district is a public way.
 Betty SladeWestport
Sent from AOL DesktopIn a message dated 11/17/2025 2:09:03 PM Eastern Standard Time, masshistpres at cs.umb.edu writes: 
Here is a link from the state website:

https://www.mass.gov/doc/3280-public-way-gl-c-90-s-1/download

>From this document, a public way is more than just "a street that has been ... accepted as a public way". It includes:

- any public highway
- a private way laid out under authority of statute
- a way dedicated to public use
- a way under control of park commissioners or body having [similar] powers
- an area where the general public still has a right of access by motor vehicle. This might include, for example, a parking lot that is adjacent to city hall, or the parking area of a public park
- a place to which members of the public have access as invitees or licensees, for example shopping centers, roadside fuel stops, parking lots, and restaurant parking lots

The document is annotated with statutes and legal decisions.

Ralph Slate
Springfield, MA


On 11/17/2025 1:08 PM, Gretchen Schuler via MassHistPres wrote:My apologies - I am the one who said parking lots for town property are public ways - Always counted them as well as public parks, train and MBTA tracks in a town in which I worked as per lawyers on Commission.....In fact most definitions of public ways include parks and parking lots - perhaps there is a definition in MGL that does not?Gretchen SchulerWayland, MA
On Mon, Nov 17, 2025 at 9:22 AM Barbara Saint Andre <bsaintandre at medwayma.gov> wrote:
Note: As of July 1st, 2025, all Town of Medway emails have changed to @medwayma.gov. Please edit your contacts to reflect this change.


I would caution that parking lots are not generally public ways.  A public way is a street that has been laid out and accepted as a public way by the Select Board and Town Meeting, or has become a public way by other legal means.  Check with your town clerk or planning board for a list of public ways in your town.  

 

Barbara J. Saint Andre

Director, Community and Economic Development

Town of Medway

155 Village Street

Medway, MA 02053

(508) 321-4918

 

From: MassHistPres <masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu> On Behalf Of Gretchen Schuler via MassHistPres
Sent: Friday, November 14, 2025 9:28 PM
To: Nancy Dole <nlouisedole at gmail.com>
Cc: MHC Preservation listserv <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu>
Subject: [External] Re: [MassHistPres] Public way

 

YES, absolutely!  It is a public way.

Gretchen Schuler

Wayland Historic District Commission

 

On Wed, Nov 12, 2025 at 9:10 AM Nancy Dole via MassHistPres <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu> wrote:


Would a structure visible from a town owned parking lot be considered visible from a public way? 
Nancy Dole
West Tisbury HDC
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