February 4, 2014 

Dear Fellow Congregant,

I'm very pleased to report that our application to build a new synagogue at 92 Orchard Street was unanimously approved last evening by the Inland Wetlands and Watercourse Agency, an important step in the approval process.

We owe our thanks to the New Building Committee, and especially co-chairs Sandy Soule and Andrew Loebelson, who have worked tirelessly to bring us to this point.

The next step will be to go before Planning and Zoning, most likely in early March.  The confirmed date will be announced shortly, and I hope that you can attend. The presence of so many congregants last night was an important reminder to the decision-makers that a few opponents who claim to speak for the community do not represent the entire community.

I will paraphrase here, since I do not have the transcript, but Agency members spoke before taking their vote.  Comments included phrases like, "I believe this project will be a huge success for the Town, the neighborhood, and of course the synagogue", and "The synagogue's responsiveness to the concerns raised by the neighbors and the Agency speaks well to the values of the synagogue as described by the Rabbi."

Best regards,

Robert Birnbaum