Resident urges Yes vote on Neighborhood Housing Plan, cites demographer’s findings

Joan Matthews of 31 Rosemary Street addressed the Select Board during the public-comment period on Jan. 7 to urge a Yes vote on the Neighborhood Housing Plan scheduled for the Jan. 14 ballot.

Why it matters: the ballot question concerns local zoning changes that proponents and opponents say could affect the town’s housing supply and school enrollment. Matthews cited the town’s contracted demographer and warned against delaying zoning changes out of fear of outlier events.

What the speaker said. Matthews quoted the finance committee’s earlier remark that it is “absolutely critical to a full and complete understanding of what effect the neighborhood housing plan will have on the schools.” She said the demographer’s results (identified in the transcript as McKibbin) indicate a likely buildout scenario that does not drive the large school-enrollment increases some opponents have suggested. Matthews suggested that even a full buildout over 10 years would yield an increase that the town could manage, and she cautioned that waiting for perfect certainty can cause the town to lose development opportunities such as the Muzzy site.

Her closing appeal. Matthews concluded by urging listeners to “trust the experts, trust the data” and asked residents to “vote yes for the neighborhood housing plan on January 14th.”

Notes on sourcing. The statements summarized here were made during the meeting’s public-comment period and are attribution-limited to the speaker, Joan Matthews.