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Planning board details master plan progress and readies zoning articles for special town meeting
Summary
Planning staff and the planning board reported progress on the 2020 master plan, noting 8 completed strategies, 61 in process and 18 not started. They highlighted housing strategies — including accessory dwelling units and starter-home districts — and said four zoning articles will go to a special town meeting in January.
Planning staff, joined by Planning Board Chair Mike Feck, gave the Select Board an annual update on the 2020 master plan on Dec. 9, saying the document—s action-plan matrix shows 8 strategies completed, 61 in process and 18 not yet started. The plan is organized around six vision pillars and contains 23 goals and 86 strategies.
The presentation highlighted housing-focused strategies that the planning board expects to advance at a special town meeting in January. Staff said the board is pursuing zoning changes to allow more accessory dwelling units, create starter-home districts and adapt existing structures to enable more diverse housing types for smaller households and older adults. "ADUs are a part of that," a planning board member said, adding that public hearings have drawn both strong enthusiasm and concerns about overuse.
The update also emphasized other master-plan priorities: a Greenway Corridor strategy that links local conservation purchases and regional trail connections, ongoing work on a complete-streets prioritization plan, and a downtown facade-improvement program that received state legislative earmarks. Planning staff said the program received $50,000 in its first round, was cut to $25,000 the next cycle, and now has another $50,000 allocated for an upcoming round.
Why it matters: the master plan guides land-use, transportation and open-space choices for about a decade and the zoning articles scheduled for special town meeting could change where and how the town allows more housing. Planning staff encouraged residents to review the publicly available action-plan matrix and attend the second public hearing on Dec. 11.
Implementation and next steps: the planning board said it will present four proposed zoning articles at the special town meeting; accessory dwelling units were a focal point of public hearings and staff expect to propose setback and design standards intended to balance increased housing options with neighborhood concerns. The board also proposed a short, interactive session for the Select Board in June to review progress and implementation responsibilities.
Speakers quoted in this story are drawn from the meeting transcript of the Select Board meeting.
