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Developer pitches rezoning at One Research Drive to allow retail and hundreds of housing units
Summary
Ferris Development Group asked the committee to support rezoning parcels at One Research Drive from Industrial D (D overlay) to Highway Business to enable retail, restaurants and multifamily housing; the firm estimated a concept with several hundred units and projected substantial increases in assessed value and tax revenue if redeveloped.
Brian Charville, chief operating officer of Ferris Development Group, told the Advisory Finance Committee Feb. 9 that Ferris is sponsoring Article 30 to change the zoning for parcels at One Research Drive from Industrial D (with the D overlay) to Highway Business (BA).
Charville said Ferris has owned the building and parcels for about 12 years and that the office market’s decline left the site substantially under‑utilized. "We're proposing that these lots be rezoned from the Industrial D overlay to Highway Business," he said, adding the change would allow uses common on Route 9 — retail, restaurants, wellness and multifamily — and make the property more marketable for reinvestment.
He described a conceptual plan that consolidates surface parking and adds a mix of retail and multifamily buildings; he estimated an initial concept could yield between roughly 200 and 400 residential units and said a large, fully redeveloped complex could materially raise assessed value. Charville said that under one scenario increased assessments from a large redevelopment could generate as much as about $3 million a year in new tax revenue for the town based on current rates.
Committee members asked about school enrollment impacts, public‑safety needs, traffic and utility upgrades. Charville said the precise unit count and building heights would be determined later through special‑permit and site‑plan processes and that the developer prefers two‑bedroom or smaller units to limit school headcount. He said infrastructure improvements would generally be part of a future development proposal and special‑permit review rather than borne by the town directly.
Planning staff said the Planning Board voted to place the article on the warrant and will hold a public hearing Feb. 17. Charville said Ferris will brief the Select Board the following evening. The project remains conceptual and would require a later special‑permit and site‑plan approval before any building work can proceed.
