The Zoning Board of Appeals Tuesday evening voted a provisional “yes” to allow Massachusetts Housing Opportunities Corporation to build 12 condominiums at 15 Littleton Road.
The board made its decision under the pressure of a looming deadline. By state law, the ZBA must grant or deny the comprehensive permit within 45 days of the close of evidentiary hearings, which concluded on June 27. The developer, MHOC, had previously granted the board a two-week extension that expires on August 29, and on Tuesday the board asked for another extension to September 4.
Failure to meet the deadline, be it August 29 or September 4, would, according to Town Counsel Mark Lanza, grant the comprehensive permit by default, a situation the ZBA wishes to avoid. If MHOC denies the extension, the board has a backup plan that allows it to meet the deadline through an open process, but preserve the conditions it demands of MHOC. Chairman Chris Tracey, however, said he preferred the September 4 option, just because it was simpler.
The comprehensive permit would come with numerous conditions, some of which MHOC has already agreed to. Others were added Tuesday evening and have yet to be accepted by the developer. In short, the granting of the permit is not a done deal. The board can still, in the limited time that remains, deny the permit if MHOC disagrees with the ZBA’s conditions or for other reasons. In a Chapter 40B project, developers who are denied a permit can appeal the decision to the Massachusetts Housing Appeals Committee.
An abiding concern of town officials and residents has been the volume of fill to be trucked onto the site: 7,000 to 9,000 cubic yards. Board members Robert Capobianco and Steve Moeser want spot checks to ensure that the developer uses uncontaminated fill and that no reclaimed material is used. The conditions require MHOC to present a construction management plan that specifies truck routes (to avoid trucks driving past the schools), the source of the fill, and contact information for the contractors working on the project. The ZBA also wants to require spot testing on the fill, to rule out contamination and ensure the soil is up to par.
Capobianco voiced adamant opposition to the common driveway that serves the 12 units, criticizing its lack of turnaround space. Currently, larger vehicles, including delivery trucks and moving trucks, cannot turn around at the end of the drive. Such vehicles, known for their significant “blind spots,” would need to exit the long driveway by backing out onto Littleton Road. Board members played out the traffic scene using a to-scale paper model of a 35-foot straight truck, trying and failing to safely turn it around on the site plans. Turnaround was marginally feasible, they discovered, with a turn of five or more points, provided no cars were parked in the condominium lots. “I’m concerned some kid will get into the blind spot. It’s not acceptable to me,” remarked Capobianco.
The fire chief has signed off on the access and egress to the project; however, ZBA members pointed out that the standards to enter and exit in an emergency were perhaps different. “They’re probably not as concerned with bumping a parked car or driving over a flower bed in a dire situation, and they can stop traffic, too,” mused one member.
The board also added conditions requiring MHOC to design fencing for its retaining walls, which also pose a falling danger to children.
A deal-sweetener of sorts was added to the conditions last week as a result of negotiations between Town Counsel Lanza and MHOC attorneys, and in response to the town’s desire to gain more benefit from the development: “The applicant [MHOC] shall pay to the town the sum of $45,000 in conjunction with the construction of the development to support local affordable housing needs, provided that no person or entity other than the applicant appeals this decision.” The town’s Municipal Affordable Housing Trust Fund would receive $5,000 from MHOC for each of the nine market-rate units as they are sold. The trust fund is an independent entity dedicated to promoting affordable and diverse housing opportunities in town. It is not part of the town government, but its members are appointed by the selectmen and its meetings are subject to the state’s open meeting law.
Tracey, Capobianco, and Moeser objected to the “escape hatch” built into the appeals clause and asked Lanza to remove or renegotiate it. Tracey said that the donation should be “part of the cost of doing business” for the developer.
According to Water Commission Chairman R. David Swain, the town water main extends about 20 yards past 15 Littleton Road’s property line, making it eligible to tie into town water. “The location of the main is a simple fact and has nothing to do with how I personally feel about a particular project,” he said in a telephone conversation Monday. All eligible homeowners pay for a connection from their home to the water main, but MHOC will do much more. According to the conditions of the comprehensive permit, MHOC will pay for upgrades to water pipes starting near the center of town, subject to direction from the water commissioners and the Department of Public Works. Lanza allowed that the town center upgrades, which Swain said were long needed but “under the radar” until now, might require town meeting approval. Simply tying 15 Littleton Road into the water main does not require a town meeting vote, he said. On Tuesday, Town Administrator Tim Bragan said he was satisfied, through his research, that 15 Littleton Road had a clear right to town water.
Tracey, Moeser, and Capobianco are eligible to vote on the comprehensive permit for 15 Littleton Road. Member Ted Maxant is not eligible to vote because he missed a hearing on the project, though he provides input and attends hearings. James DeZutter has resigned from the board: the only hearings he attends and must vote on are those for the Ayer Road 40B development, a proposal for 32 housing units and 8,000 square feet of commercial space.
The next ZBA hearing is scheduled for September 4 at 7:30 in the Hapgood Room of the former library.
