By Patricia Roy

At the Nov. 9 Special Town Meeting, voters turned down an amendment to the town’s zoning bylaw that would bring the Millbury into compliance with the state’s MBTA Communities Act. 

The proposed zoning change was turned down by a simple majority of the 356 voters present.

The Communities Act, passed in 2021, mandates that 177 communities that either host MBTA service or abut a town that offers the service, have a least one sizable zoning district that allows multi-family housing “by right”, that is, without requiring special permit zoning changes. Multifamily housing is defined as three or more units.

Since the town is adjacent to Worcester and its commuter rail station, the Communities Act called for Millbury to institute a zoning overlay district to allow multifamily housing. An overlay district is a type of land use zoning that “lies” on top of the existing zoning and potentially covers underlying districts or portions of them.

In the town meeting warrant, the Planning Board wrote their purpose in proposing the bylaw was to encourage the production of a variety of housing sizes and types to provide access to permanent housing for people with a variety of needs, ages, household types, and income levels. They noted the plan would also increase the supply of available housing that is also affordable to low and moderate income households and to increase the tax base through private investment in new housing development.

The overlay district was outlined as 61.5 acres in the down town area. According to Planning Director Conor McCormack, there would have been a capacity for 777 residential units. The buildings would be allowed a maximum height of three stories and 40 feet. The structures would need to look like three story town homes and not like city-like dwellings, he said. Parking space requirements would be one for each studio and one bedroom unit and two for each two bedroom unit.

The deadline for compliance with the act is Dec. 31 2024.

The Planning Board had previously voted 3-2 to recommend passage of the overlay article after months of study, state guidance and public hearings. 

The MBTA Communities Act does not provide funding for housing development, McCormack said, but does require that 10 percent of units be set aside as affordable. The state set Dec. 31, 2024 as a deadline for the town to agree to the overlay district. By missing that deadline, the town may become ineligible for certain state grants. 

Roadway Advisory Committee member Thomas Perry told the meeting he didn’t want the town to lose out on the state “Complete Streets” grant money that provides accessible travel options for people of all abilities, including cyclists and pedestrians.

The Communities Act zoning has been adopted by 82 of the municipalities affected by their proximity to MBTA services.

The metro- Boston town of Milton rejected the Communities Act and currently is in litigation with the state for non-compliance. Holden has not met their 2023 action plan deadline and residents of Rockport on the North Shore have launched a federal lawsuit to prevent a glut of new building in the oceanfront town. 

Before the vote was taken, town zoning consultant Judi Barrett of Barrett Planning Group, said if the article didn’t pass, the state would likely refer it back to the community as they did with Wellesley.