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2<br />

Select Board rejects<br />

Richardson Green plan<br />

By Anne MArie ToBin<br />

LYNNFIELD ― The Select<br />

Board declined to give its<br />

support to a warrant petition<br />

seeking a zoning change of the<br />

Richardson Green property on<br />

Main Street, seemingly closing<br />

the door on developer Angus<br />

Bruce’s proposed project to<br />

build 54 units of senior housing.<br />

Bruce appeared at Monday’s<br />

night Select Board meeting to<br />

tout the benefits of the project,<br />

seeking the board’s support<br />

for the zoning change and the<br />

project. He said the development<br />

will generate “millions<br />

of dollars” of revenue for the<br />

town.<br />

“I cannot endorse the project<br />

as proposed for this property,”<br />

said Select Board member Phil<br />

Crawford. “It seems similar to<br />

what we have seen before and it<br />

looks like you have added some<br />

carrots at the end of the stick<br />

and, while that doesn’t diminish<br />

the benefits as you pointed out,<br />

I prefer the direction we are<br />

heading in.”<br />

The direction referred to by<br />

Crawford concerns the town’s<br />

stepped-up efforts to exercise<br />

a right of first refusal it holds<br />

on the property at the contract<br />

price of $2.71 million. Recently,<br />

the town received a $1.6 million<br />

Municipal Vulnerability<br />

Preparedness (MVP) Action<br />

Grant to help fund the town’s<br />

acquisition, which Town<br />

Administrator Rob Dolan has<br />

described as “one of the largest<br />

MVP grants he has ever seen.”<br />

In addition, the Lynnfield<br />

Conservation Commission has<br />

pledged $200,000 toward acquisition.<br />

Most recently, the Essex<br />

County Greenbelt Association<br />

pledged another $300,000 toward<br />

the project. Combined,<br />

those leave a gap of approximately<br />

$571,000, which will<br />

be funded from the proceeds of<br />

the town’s $3.8 million federal<br />

stimulus funds award.<br />

The bottom line is the town<br />

will use the funds to simultaneously<br />

exercise its right of first<br />

refusal, assigning its rights to<br />

the property to Greenbelt under<br />

Massachusetts General Laws<br />

Chapter 61. The town would<br />

then purchase a conservation<br />

restriction from Greenbelt to<br />

preserve the property in perpetuity<br />

as open space.<br />

Bruce’s proposal calls for the<br />

construction of a 54-unit, 55-<br />

plus housing project for seniors<br />

on part of the 21-acre parcel,<br />

with about 10 acres being given<br />

to the town for use as open<br />

space. A project rejected by the<br />

town two years ago called for<br />

a single-family development.<br />

Bruce submitted a citizen’s<br />

petition for inclusion on the<br />

Oct. 18 Town Meeting warrant<br />

seeking to change the zoning<br />

from single-family residential<br />

to an elderly housing district.<br />

Bruce’s project will provide<br />

access to the property at the<br />

rear of the parcel via a road as<br />

well as five parking spaces. A<br />

1,700-foot water main from the<br />

intersection of Lowell and Main<br />

streets will be constructed,<br />

along with several fire hydrants.<br />

WEEKLYNEWS.NET - 978-532-5880 OCTOBER 7, 2021<br />

Bruce said one of the proposed<br />

units will be reserved as affordable<br />

housing for a veteran.<br />

Bruce said the project<br />

will generate approximately<br />

$800,000 in property taxes, a<br />

$20,000 impact fee per unit totalling<br />

$1,060,000 plus excise<br />

taxes. The town will also benefit<br />

from enhanced fire-safety<br />

improvements with new fire<br />

hydrants.<br />

“I am impressed with the<br />

presentation and the benefits<br />

you cite, but I think that even<br />

six months ago we did not<br />

know that we would be in this<br />

position to be able to acquire<br />

this property at no cost to the<br />

taxpayers,” Select Board Chair<br />

Dick Dalton said. “This, too, is<br />

my preference.”<br />

While Select Board member<br />

Joe Connell agreed with<br />

Crawford and Dalton, Bruce<br />

did not.<br />

“I don’t know why they don’t<br />

discuss the money, that’s other<br />

people’s money,” he said after<br />

the meeting. “It seems like<br />

$571,000 is an awful lot of<br />

money when I am giving them<br />

10 acres for access and they<br />

are getting all of that income. I<br />

don’t agree that this is free.”<br />

“One of the most important<br />

things is the fire protection part<br />

of this,” said Mirabeau Lane<br />

resident Rich Ripley. “There is<br />

a lack of fire protection in that<br />

area, and having a developer<br />

bring that in there is an enormous<br />

benefit to the community<br />

and the residents who live there<br />

now. This is a missed opportunity<br />

on our part for the town.<br />

It’s just a shame.”<br />

The Planning Board will hold<br />

a public hearing on Oct. 13 at<br />

7 p.m. in the Maney Meeting<br />

Room at Town Hall to allow<br />

residents to weigh in on the<br />

petition.<br />

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PHOTO | ANNE MARIE TOBIN<br />

Developer Angus Bruce carries<br />

a rendering of his plan.<br />

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has reworked the provisions of<br />

the bylaw, significantly scaling<br />

back the original provisions.<br />

“We think now we have addressed<br />

all the concerns that<br />

have been brought to us by the<br />

Select Board and constituents,”<br />

Planning Board Chair Brian<br />

Charville said.<br />

The bylaw applies only to<br />

“building activities,” Charville<br />

added.<br />

“The only tree removal that<br />

would be regulated with this<br />

(bylaw) is tree removal that is<br />

done related to a new subdivision,<br />

new home construction, a<br />

site plan ― which typically is<br />

for commercial property (and)<br />

not residential ― or a special<br />

permit granted by the Planning<br />

Board,” he said.<br />

Charville said the board<br />

made these changes because<br />

they had heard concerns that<br />

the bylaw shouldn’t apply to<br />

the average homeowner who is<br />

performing simple tree upkeep.<br />

Director of Planning<br />

and Conservation Emilie<br />

Cadamartori said the Planning<br />

Board met with the Select<br />

Board to address its concerns<br />

over the bylaw.<br />

Before<br />

Light agenda<br />

on tap for<br />

Town Meeting<br />

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Town Administrator Rob Dolan stands outside Town Hall.<br />

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“We made a few more adjustments<br />

after listening to the<br />

Select Board and after the board<br />

didn’t support it for the June<br />

Town Meeting, we had more<br />

time to understand the feedback<br />

the public was giving us,”<br />

she said. “This bylaw is substantially<br />

different than prior<br />

versions so we are hopeful.<br />

“This is a beginning, but<br />

people need to realize that this<br />

bylaw only came into existence<br />

because the public came to us<br />

asking, ‘Why aren’t you doing<br />

something about this?’ People<br />

asked us to do something about<br />

the fact that people were removing<br />

trees. We just didn’t<br />

think this up on our own, people<br />

asked us to do something about<br />

the loss of these trees.’”<br />

The fourth article is a petition<br />

submitted by developer Angus<br />

Bruce, seeking the rezoning of<br />

the Richardson Green parcel<br />

on Main Street. Specifically,<br />

Bruce is looking to change the<br />

zoning from a residential to<br />

elderly housing district. The<br />

current zoning only permits<br />

single-family homes.<br />

Assistant<br />

Town<br />

Administrator Bob Curtin said<br />

that Bruce’s petition automatically<br />

goes on the warrant due<br />

its status as a citizen’s petition;<br />

the developer will appear at a<br />

future meeting of the Select<br />

Board, he said.<br />

The Planning Board will<br />

also conduct a public hearing<br />

on Bruce’s proposal, which<br />

is scheduled for Wednesday,<br />

Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. in the Maney<br />

Room of Town Hall.<br />

Bruce acknowledged the fact<br />

that the project may be “moot”<br />

should the town decide to exercise<br />

its right of first refusal on<br />

the property.<br />

The Town Meeting will be<br />

held in the Lynnfield Middle<br />

School auditorium at 7 p.m.

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