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Acton boards continue review of five-year Housing Production Plan; joint meeting set for May 19
Summary
Planning board and select board heard a presentation from consultants JM Goldson and discussed goals to preserve subsidized housing inventory, expand mixed-use and wastewater capacity, and support seniors; boards agreed to reconvene May 19 to allow limited additional public comment and to request a shortened 30-day state review window if needed.
Consultants from JM Goldson presented Acton’s final draft Housing Production Plan at a joint meeting of the Town of Acton Select Board and Planning Board on May 12, 2025, and the boards agreed to reconvene May 19 to allow limited additional public outreach and to complete the formal filing process with the state.
The presentation by Jen Goldson, founder of JM Goldson, and planner Noah Harper summarized the plan’s aims for the next five years: maintaining Acton’s subsidized housing inventory at or above 10 percent, encouraging diverse housing types (including mixed-use development near village centers), and prioritizing infrastructure capacity such as wastewater and water to support new housing. Harper said the plan would advance “rezoning vacant and underutilized areas and village centers” and recommended annual municipal coordination to keep the plan from “sitting on the shelf.”
Why it matters: the Housing Production Plan (HPP) frames town priorities and is used for grant eligibility and for demonstrating incremental progress toward state housing goals. Board members and members of the public pressed the consultants and town staff for more detail on infrastructure costs, how “affordable housing” is defined, and whether public input collected during forums had been incorporated.
Discussion highlights: select board members asked the consultants to clarify three themes raised in public comments: infrastructure (wastewater and water capacity), emphasis on rehabilitation of existing housing versus new construction, and whether previous public feedback had been incorporated. Harper said comments supporting mixed-use in South Acton and calls to study municipal wastewater were reflected in the draft. Planning staff confirmed comments from in-person workshops and sticky-note exercises were reviewed and incorporated into the draft goals and strategies.
Several board members urged more precise language. A select board member asked that the plan explicitly distinguish between deed-restricted (state-certified) affordable housing and “naturally affordable” housing; consultants agreed to clarify. Another member asked that “low- to moderate-income” be spelled out with standard income definitions; consultants said they would tighten the language.
Public comment and process: multiple board members, staff and speakers urged the town to expand the HPP public comment window because the two-week draft-comment period overlapped with town meeting and local elections. Kristin (planning director Kristen Pichard) and the consultants said the final draft incorporated feedback from the most recent in-person forums and from other outreach, and they described the statutory timeline for state review. Staff said if the boards want more time the town can request a shortened review window from the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) and set an internal deadline of May 19 to finalize the filing.
Decision and next steps: the select board and planning board agreed to reconvene on May 19, 2025, to determine whether to reopen public comment briefly and to finalize a version of the HPP for submission to the EOHLC. Staff will request guidance from EOHLC about compressing the state review period if the boards reopen comment.
