Northampton council declines to refer rezoning of Phillips Place parcels after residents oppose 54‑unit proposal

The Northampton City Council voted not to refer a zoning ordinance affecting two parcels abutting Phillips Place after residents and several councilors said the rezoning would permit a five‑story, 54‑unit apartment building that would alter the historic neighborhood.

Councilor Quaverly Rothenberg introduced the ordinance to amend the zoning map (map IDs listed at the hearing) to change the parcels from Central Business Side Street (CB Side) to Urban Residential C (URC). The council considered a motion to refer the ordinance to the Planning Board and the Committee on Legislative Matters; after debate the motion failed on a roll call, with eight councilors voting no and one councilor — Rothenberg — voting yes.

The matter drew dozens of public comments and extended council debate. Residents who live on Phillips Place and adjacent streets told the council the proposed building would overwhelm narrow streets, reduce light and privacy for adjacent homes, and worsen already limited on‑street parking. Dan Brindell, a Phillips Place resident, said, “My home is boxed in on three sides by this central business expansion,” and urged the council to restore residential protections for the block. Multiple speakers described the block as one of Northampton’s oldest residential areas and noted recent archival and preservation work on the former Saint John Cantius Church across the street.

Sarah Stein, president of O'Connell Development Group, which owns the parking lot at the corner of Holly Street and Phillips Place and submitted the site plan to the Planning Board, described the developer’s application. “Our firm submitted a site plan application for a 54‑unit multifamily apartment building on this location,” Stein said, and told the council the proposed units would range from studios to two‑bedrooms and were intended as “middle market rental housing.” Stein told the council the planning board public hearing on the project is scheduled for April 24.

Council debate focused on two related questions: whether the city council should initiate a narrowly targeted map change that critics called spot zoning, and whether the Planning Board’s pending review of the specific site plan and a special permit is the appropriate forum to test design and mitigation measures. Councilor Elkins — a former Planning Board member who opposed the referral — argued the Planning Board’s special‑permit process gives residents and the board more practical discretion to require changes to a development’s layout, scale, parking and landscaping than a single parcel rezoning would. Councilor Rothenberg responded that “the zoning is what allows for the buildings to be 65 to 70 feet tall. The zoning is the problem for the residents,” and that the council should register its view by referring the ordinance.

The motion to refer was made by Councilor Rothenberg and seconded on the floor; the final roll call recorded eight councilors voting no and one yes, and the motion failed. Council President Alex Jarrett confirmed the Planning Board hearing will proceed next week; councilors and residents were urged to attend that meeting to comment on the special permit and site plan.

The ordinance text and neighborhood materials shown during the meeting were added to the meeting record for public access.

Votes at a glance • Motion to refer ordinance (rezoning parcels abutting Phillips Place from CB Side to URC) to Legislative Matters and the Planning Board — mover: Councilor Quaverly Rothenberg; second: not specified on the floor — outcome: failed (8 no, 1 yes).