In a 20-minute special meeting Wednesday afternoon, the Planning Board voted 8-0-1 to recommend a proposed option for a zoning overlay district to comply with the MBTA Communities Act to Special Town Meeting on Nov. 18. Suggested by chair Rob Benson at the Nov. 4 Planning Board meeting, this overlay district includes The Preserve and Walcott Valley condominium complexes and the downtown area.
Condo residents of The Preserve, Walcott Valley and Indian Brook were vocal in their opposition to being included in any of the plans at this meeting. They speculated that the state could take their property by eminent domain, which was said to be a false assumption, or that developers could pressure people to sell their homes.
Principal Planner John Gelcich notified the board that the initial option it presented — which was narrowly voted down at May’s Annual Town Meeting — could not be reconsidered for two years by Town Meeting if the Planning Board voted not to recommend it. This proposal, which included The Preserve, the downtown area, Carbone’s Restaurant and two abutting parcels, was voted down in a 2-5-2 vote. It already has been printed in the warrant, Gelcich confirmed, so it could be brought up for discussion but not voted on.
The initial option already has been vetted by the state and would have received the state’s approval for conforming to the law. There was no time for the state to analyze the new proposal.
The town must present a plan to the state by Dec. 31 or face noncompliance with the MBTA Communities Act. Noncompliance could trigger Hopkinton being sued by the state as well as the loss of state grant funding. The Zoning Advisory Committee and the Planning Board have been working on formulating plans for more than two years.
While the newer proposal received Planning Board approval, Gelcich advised that it “may not be allowable” at the STM if the town moderator decides it is “not substantially different” from the first proposal.
Added Gelcich: “We could get into a situation where the Planning Board has a Special Town Meeting for MBTA Communities and neither of the proposals are votable.”
At that point, member Parker Happ suggested voting to approve the article with both proposals included. Member Matthew Wronka agreed, saying it reflected the board’s previous goal of putting two options before the STM “and letting the town decide.”
“I think that makes us look really disorganized,” objected Benson.
“Rob, I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer here,” said Gelcich, referring to the pessimistic “Saturday Night Live” character. “But it looks pretty disorganized as it is. Recommending two proposals to Town Meeting isn’t going to change that fact.”
Member Elise Mihajloski, who originally supported the initial proposal, said she reconsidered her decision because “Town Meeting already spoke for itself.” Member Karen Wills also changed her mind for the same reason.
Said Wills: “The chips can fall where they may.”
Member Lucia Lopez said she reviewed the Annual Town Meeting video. Her perspective was that Town Meeting members said there was enough time to see if another option could be created that the town preferred.
Lopez, Wronka and Happ said during a straw poll that they wanted to recommend both and let the town decide. Benson, Mihajloski, Wills, Vikasith Pratty, Jane Moran and Mike King supported the second, newer option in the straw poll.
When the votes were taken, Happ abstained on both. Pratty abstained on recommending the first option. At the Nov. 4 Planning Board meeting, Pratty abstained from voting on both options, leaving the board deadlocked on both proposals 4-4-1 and spurring the creation of this meeting.
The newer proposal was supported by everyone except Happ. Lopez and Wronka voted to recommend the original proposal, while King, Mihajloski, Moran, Wills and Benson voted against it.
Wronka brought up that the first option already was printed in the warrant, which Benson seemed to not realize. Benson said it could be “fundamentally ignored or disregarded.”
Benson added that any of the properties previously discussed as options by the Planning Board could be combined into a new plan at the STM.
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