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Town Board and Developer Discuss Lifting EDD Overlay to Enable Natali Mixed‑Use Plan
Summary
Developer Natali asked the board whether the town would support removing or working around an environmental development (EDD) overlay so a mixed‑use project — retail, apartments, and detached homes — can move forward; board members suggested a PDD and asked for more input from planning and conservation advisory boards.
Developer representatives and town board members discussed proposals for a parcel zoned Town Center Business that also carries an EDD (environmental development) overlay. The developer, identified in the discussion as Natali, told the board the company’s preferred plan is a mixed‑use development with ground‑floor retail and apartments above, plus areas of townhouses and patio single‑family homes. Town officials said the current EDD overlay and the Town Center Business regulations create a conflict that would prevent the full mix of uses unless the overlay is removed or the zoning is modified.
Board members and staff described two possible paths: (1) remove the EDD overlay formally, or (2) pursue a planned development district (PDD) or similar zoning mechanism that lets the town address environmental preservation in site design while allowing the mixed uses. A staff member said a PDD could allow the town to preserve portions of the overlay that warrant protection while enabling development in other areas. Several board members said they wanted assurance the overlay could be overcome before asking the developer to spend on engineering and detailed plans.
Participants referenced an environmental report from Earth Dimensions that, according to the developer’s presentation, concluded the EDD zone contains “nothing ecologically significant” and indicated the town had limited institutional memory about why the overlay was adopted. Board members said the zoning map was enacted when the town revised the zoning code, and that inclusion on the map does not make the overlay immutable.
Planning questions discussed included exact parcel boundaries, adjacency to a Rite Aid and the bus garage, potential retail tenants, and the orientation of buildings and access points. The town received written comments from the Conservation Advisory Board; those materials were discussed and will be circulated among board members. Several board members said they were generally supportive of adding mixed‑use development to improve downtown connections, but emphasized that formal review by the planning board, input from the conservation advisory board, and a clearer plan from the developer are needed before the town commits to removing or altering the overlay.
No formal vote or zoning change was taken at the workshop. Board members directed staff to continue discussions, circulate the conservation advisory board comments, and work with the developer on next steps including whether to pursue a PDD or a combined motion to resolve overlay and zoning changes.
