Back from the Dead. 230 East Central Revived

On Monday, August 8. after more than six months of hearing, Taj Estates, a multifamily project proposed to replace a single-family home at 230 East Central Street, finally came up for a vote. Three planning board members voted yes, and two no, traditionally not the “super majority” needed to greenlight a project.

So, Town Planner Amy Love announced that permission was denied and the meeting was promptly adjourned.

But it turns one of the last of the conditions imposed on the developer in an effort to scale back or stop the project was the inclusion of an affordable housing element (as defined by state statute). The developer had agreed and baked that into the proposal that the board voted on – apparently unaware that projects with affordable housing (and/or mixed use, and/or within a half-mile of public transit) no longer require a super majority vote, under a revised statute passed in 2021 in an effort by the Commonwealth to boost housing production.

Thus, that simple majority vote actually ended up approving the project.

Mark Cerel

And according to explanation provided at the special hearing of the Planning Board on Tuesday night by Town Attorney Mark Cerel. a court would likely agree with the developer....And, since the hearing that unexpectedly and perhaps unintentionally closed without imposing any of the supplemental conditions the town normally adds to approvals, they could have moved ahead with few if any restrictions.

So, Cerel spoke to the chair and individual board members and recommended that they accept the de facto approval but meet to add conditions – something the developer’s attorney, Richard Cornetta agreed to.

Needless to say, the neighbors and abutters at Tuesday’s meeting were sullen and the board members looked anything but happy. At one point, Clerk Beth Wierling, who had imposed the affordable housing requirement, spoke to the abutters in the crowd and said how sorry she was that things had turned out the way they did.

Among the conditions added, which she read aloud, were that the applicant must meet the requirements under Mass General laws in terms of providing a deed restriction on the property for the 10% affordable units in perpetuity. This must be completed prior to commencement of construction and pre construction meeting. The applicant will be required to contribute $5,000 towards a future traffic signal study for “the intersection at West Central street and King Street (sic).

The Board eventually voted unanimously to approve the conditions and the meeting adjourned.