State Sen. Timilty Comes Out Against Moosehill 40B

From state Senator James Timilty:

On behalf of the residents of East Walpole, I write to express my opposition to the proposal  submitted by Framingham-based Barberry Homes, Inc. to build a 174-unit apartment complex on  Moose Hill Road. 

My principal concern during this process is the direct impact this proposal will have on the  residents of the immediate area. After attending a neighborhood meeting earlier this month, I  heard very real concerns from local officials, Moose Hill Road residents and neighbors relative  to public safety, traffic, impacts to the environment as well as loss to individual home values.  Many of the residents I spoke with believe an apartment complex of this magnitude would  devastate a small neighborhood like Moose Hill Road and forever change the character and  fabric of our community.

Earlier this year, town officials heard the first details of “The Residences at Moose Hill,” a  proposed residential apartment community which would be situated on 13.5 acres of land  between Moose Hill Road and Emily Lane. The project consists of constructing five two-story  townhouses and three midrise apartment buildings and parking to accommodate 315 vehicles.  The proposed site is also located in the proximity of 4.5 acres of wetlands, including the only robust cold-water fishery remaining in the Neponset River Watershed which remains vital to our  thriving trout population. 

For these reasons I must oppose Barberry Homes’ proposed development and any other proposal  which seeks to put economic development before the neighborhoods in my district.

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 40B was implemented in 1969 and states that 10 percent of  a town’s households must be deemed income eligible, otherwise allow for builders to bypass  local zoning bylaws to achieve that quota. Walpole, like 87% of other communities in the  Commonwealth, struggles to meet its 10% quota and currently only meets about half the goal, making it difficult for the town to block a 40B effort.

Earlier this month, I cosigned a letter with Representative John Rogers and Representative Louis Kafka requesting a change to the Department of Housing and Community Development’s guidelines to Chapter 40B. Where so many communities struggle to meet that 10% goal, 

Representative Rogers, Kafka and I requested that a change be made to allow the number of  rental residential units in a town to count towards a community’s 10% goal. While this would not  necessarily bring Walpole over the top to return total discretion back to local boards, but it would  certainly bring the town one step closer to manage and maintain its own character and zoning  composition without any outside interference. 

Additionally, I voted in favor of an amendment earlier this week to a Housing Bond Bill sponsored by my colleague Senator Robert Hedlund from Weymouth which would have required affordable housing applications to be subject to local bylaws and ordinances concerning the  disturbance of environmentally sensitive areas, such as wetlands. Compliance with these local  bylaws would not have been considered an uneconomic condition and local boards would have had the sole discretion to waive local bylaws and ordinances. Although the amendment was  defeated on the Senate floor by a vote of 13-26, I anticipate working with my colleagues on both  sides of the aisle to reach a resolution to this very important issue.

Given these issues and the apparent disregard for the extreme impact this proposal presents to  our community, I urge Barberry Homes, Inc. to abandon this reckless proposal and instead  pursue a more responsible development elsewhere. 

I encourage all Walpole residents with questions or concerns to contact me directly at (617) 722-1222. Thank you for your attention to these comments and for the opportunity to serve Walpole  in the Massachusetts Senate.

With Every Good Wish,

Senator Jim Timilty

Bristol & Norfolk