Wayland River's Edge Development Heads To Special Town Meeting

WAYLAND, MA — Town Meeting will make a key decision in September on the long-planned River's Edge housing development in Wayland.

Meeting members will vote on whether to give the Board of Selectmen authorization to grant the developer, Lexington-based Wood Partners East Acquisitions, road and drainage easements across town land.

The town and Wood Partners have agreed on a $2.2 million purchase price for a parcel of land located along the Boston Post Road east of the Wayland Transfer Station access road. Wood Partners hasn't yet bought the land, but plans to if Town Meeting approves the easements.

River's Edge would contain 218 rental units, and about 55 of those would be designated as affordable for families that earn less than 80 percent of the Wayland median household income — which was about $174,000 as of 2018, according to census figures. River's Edge would help the town reach the 10 percent affordable housing stock mandated under the Massachusetts 40B law. Another 55 units will be age-restricted for people over 55.

The River's Edge project dates back to 2014, when Town Meeting approved rental housing for the parcel. After several years of searching for a developer, the town entered into a development agreement with Wood Partners in 2017. But the project was delayed that year when asbestos was found buried at the site.

Wood Partners began pursuing permits for River's Edge last fall in anticipation of a spring special Town Meeting to approve the easements — but then the coronavirus pandemic hit.

The fall special Town Meeting will be held outdoors on Sept. 12 at Wayland High School.