With their vote under Article 4 on May 4, Town Meeting voters amended the town’s zoning bylaw to adopt a multifamily overlay district designed to meet the town’s obligations under the MBTA Communities Law (G.L.c. 40A, §3A). But Marblehead is not yet technically “compliant” from the state’s perspective.
Marblehead can achieve “interim compliance” with the law by submitting a complete application package for review to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, a spokesperson for the office explained. That package will include the town’s newly adopted zoning text and map certified by the town clerk.
Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer told the Current that the town would be waiting to submit its application package until the period to call for a referendum to challenge Town Meeting’s vote had expired. As seen last year, a special law, Chapter 405 of the Acts of 1954 requires the Select Board to hold such an election upon receipt of a petition signed by at least 300 registered voters within “five days, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, from the dissolution” of Town Meeting, which would be May 11 this year.
Local attorney John DiPiano, who led last year’s petition drive, had previously told the Current that he had no plans to challenge Town Meeting’s vote this year, and the Current had not learned of any attempt to gather signatures as of press time.
Once the EOHLC receives Marblehead’s application package, it will review its submission and determine whether the adopted zoning complies with the law based on the criteria set forth in the law itself and a related set of regulations, found at 760 CMR 72.00, according to the spokesperson.
Late last year, the town submitted to EOHLC a pre-adoption review application and received an initial response on Jan. 8 that outlined six technical issues that, if not addressed, might have affected the district’s ability to achieve compliance with §3A.
By Feb. 5, Marblehead had addressed those six issues to EOHLC’s satisfaction.
“Adoption of the proposed District will put Marblehead in a good position for compliance,” EOHLC noted in a follow-up letter.
EOHLC cautioned, however, “Please note that this pre-adoption review is limited to the specific issues identified at this stage of review and is based on materials provided by the Town of Marblehead. It does not constitute a representation that resolution of the identified issues would result in a compliant zoning district.”
The town was urged to “review its existing zoning carefully to make sure there are no provisions that would affect the proposed overlay zoning district.”
In response to an inquiry from the Current, the EOHLC spokesperson did not directly address any potential impact from the uproar resident David Modica created with his Town Meeting comments, which went viral on social media and spawned coverage in the Wall Street Journal and the Boston Globe, including a Globe editorial noting that Modica had “captured a generation’s housing angst.”
“We will continue working with communities through the compliance process to ensure local zoning meets the law’s requirements and supports the broader goal of making housing more affordable,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The spokesperson also touted the “real, measurable results” the MBTA Communities Law is producing, including 9,000 new multifamily homes already in the pipeline.
The spokesperson noted that 94% of MBTA communities have adopted new zoning, and nearly 90% have been determined to be fully or conditionally compliant.
“The MBTA Communities Law is one of many tools Massachusetts is using to increase housing production, create more reasonably priced homes and lower costs for residents across the state,” the spokesperson said.
