Development Policy and Forum

An increasing number of Wakefield residents are troubled by the rate of development in town and have been adversely affected by it. The assets which drew them to Wakefield are being erased at a frightening pace.

Smart Growth tenets are well-intentioned but have not resulted in what was intended or what residents may have anticipated. A recent Item Editorial stated, “Smart Growth is a theory that concentrates development in compact, walkable urban centers. It also advocates transit-oriented, walkable, bicycle-friendly land use…” .

There’s the rub; Smart Growth was intended for ‘urban’ areas, not smaller communities like Wakefield.

With each new mid- and high-rise development, residents and town boards are regaled with standard selling rhetoric that promises great benefits. We have not seen property tax relief, our downtown has not yet enjoyed the hoped-for revitalization, and our merchants still struggle. Town buildings and roadways are not being maintained adequately, and Wakefield cannot be considered a pedestrian- or bicycle- friendly town by any stretch of the imagination.

Developers are taking full advantage of the lucrative welcome mat which has been created by Town Hall in the name of ‘growing the town’. The apparent vision that ‘more-and-bigger-is-better ', a ZBA that has a hard time saying no, and newer mid- and high-rise, mixed-use zoning bylaws have forged an irresistible invitation to come to Wakefield to build, and build big and dense. Considering that our population numbers have remained steady and actually gone down in recent years, the reason for this unprecedented growth escapes us. Neighboring towns reject some large development projects, and reduce the height and size of projects because residents have expressed their concerns; theirs is a healthy mindset that town leaders and residents work collaboratively, and both enjoy the results of growing their communities responsibly.

Because growth is inevitable, Wakefield must define and formulate a working, enforceable vision for town growth that we can all live with, a vision which will enhance quality of life and benefit everyone, not just the developers.

We respectfully request that our Town Council devise a long overdue public forum through which residents and department heads can assess together development of the town as a whole, and gain a perspective on development’s cumulative impacts on residents, schools, traffic, neighborhoods, businesses and town resources, as well as infrastructure ... and, let’s not forget, quality of life.

Let us begin this urgently-needed conversation and create together a new, more careful and inclusive plan and an enforceable vision as we move forward. WCL sincerely believes that this is a necessary and smart move for both today’s and tomorrow’s Wakefield residents.

Bronwyn Della-Volpe

on behalf of WCL members