Natick Select Board Closes San Sushi Liquor Hearing, Approves Scholarships and Banner

NATICK -- May 13, 2026, Natick Select Board closes San Sushi liquor license hearing, awards two MathWorks scholarships, and endorses a new downtown banner design. The board voted 5-0 to substitute Sa Nguyen for Stuart Rothman as manager of record on San Sushi LLC's application for a new Section 12 all-alcohol on-premise license before closing the continued public hearing. The board unanimously approved MathWorks scholarships for Natick High School seniors Doris Yu, a Harvard-bound physics student with a 4.7 GPA and 1580 SAT score, and Owen Ford, who exhausted Natick High's math curriculum as a freshman and plans to study nuclear engineering at Yale or Georgia Tech. Natick Center Associates Executive Director Heather Rockwood reported $290,416 in 2025 revenue against $288,020 in expenditures, highlighted a 600 percent increase in fundraising at the relocated Natick Nights beer garden, and won board endorsement for a new banner design by Natick resident Mackenzie Pearson to hang on 39 downtown street poles at $175 each. The meeting closed with an unresolved Chapter 87 public shade tree appeal over a silver maple at 9 Lincoln Street Extension, where petitioner Patrick Forstner cited structural decay and safety risks to nearby softball spectators and residents, while neighbor Patty Scheinman urged the board to preserve the tree she has seen from her 40-year Chester Street home.