Our current Master Plan succinctly states, “the C[commercial] District is a substantially underutilized business zone.” One of the important findings in the report is, “the standards which worked well for retaining rural character in the AR [agricultural/residential] district had the unintended effect of promoting strip commercial development.”
At the Annual Town Meeting last year, we voted to remedy a decades-long need for a permanent Town Planner and hired an AICP-certified planner, Chris Ryan, in October to oversee the Department of Community and Economic Development established by our Charter. Chris has been doing great work, along with our Planning Board, this past year. Thank you!
Recently, our Planning Board voted to raise the strip commercial-inducing floor area ratio (FAR) maximum from 0.2 to a more reasonable 0.4 (0.3, with a 0.1 affordable housing bonus) at the meeting on Sept. 30, 2019.
Unfortunately, as our Master Plan also correctly points out, “Harvard residents and many local officials have been reluctant to embrace ideas for reducing zoning obstacles to commercial development” in the commercial district.
I’m looking forward to supporting Chris and our Planning Board at the Special Town Meeting on Oct. 28, 2019. I will be voting to approve their recommended changes to the Ayer Road Village Special Permit and endorse their hard work.
Tim Schmoyer
Stow Road
