Town Meeting 2025: Members will tackle three Special Town Meetings before convening for their Annual Town Meeting; MBTA Communities Multi-Family Zoning and West Side public safety facility feasibility study loom as top priorities

By Mark E. Vogler

Town Meeting members could spend several nights considering warrant articles in three separate Special Town Meetings before they begin this year’s Annual Town Meeting, which is set for 7:30 p.m. on May 5. A warrant article to amend the town’s Zoning By-laws to add an MBTA Communities Multi-Family Overlay District (MCMOD) is one of the three Special Town Meetings requested by Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree, who said it could take “at least a night.” Crabtree said he would call in attorneys and consultants to brief Town Meeting members on how to comply with state law in order to allow multifamily housing as of right.

The MBTA communities law, also known as Section 3A of the Zoning Act, creates zoning that encourages new multifamily housing in areas served by public transit. Housing enabled by the MBTA communities law provides opportunities for people to live, work and thrive in walkable neighborhoods closer to transit.

“The lack of zoning for multi-family housing is a barrier for new housing development in Massachusetts,” according to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC). “By allowing multifamily housing near transit, we can create new housing in walkable neighborhoods closer to transit. This is not just good housing policy, it is good climate and transportation policy, too.”

The MCMOD bylaw would become effective upon its approval by Saugus Town Meeting. But the election to develop property under the zoning created may not be made until the EOHLC has issued a determination that the bylaw complies with state law.

The MCMOD is an overlay district composed of three subdistricts, according to the warrant article. The dimensional requirements included a minimum lot size of 20,000 square feet and a maximum height of three stories and a maximum height of 35 feet.

The Solid Waste, Trash and Recycling Modernization Bylaw is the subject of a warrant article for another Special Town Meeting requested by Crabtree. With the town in position to convert to an automated trash and recycling collection system, Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree submitted the proposal. It was one of several warrant articles that Town Meeting will take up on the night of Town Meeting. “This bylaw is enacted to modernize and streamline the Town’s approach to the management and collection of solid waste, trash, and recycling and to advance the goals of environmental sustainability, operational efficiency and public health,” the proposed article said.

“Across the waste management industry, municipalities are increasingly transitioning to automated collection systems utilizing standardized, wheeled carts (Toters). These systems support cleaner streets, improved worker safety, and greater participation in recycling programs – leading to an increase in diverted recyclable materials. These outcomes align with the Town of Saugus’s long-standing commitment to environmentally conscious policies and waste reduction,” the article continued.

A related article will seek funding for the new bylaw.

A third Special Town Meeting called by Crabtree includes two pages summarizing 14 warrant articles – some of them funding for priority projects:

• Of great interest to Town Meeting members is an article submitted by the town manager to seek funding for Phase two of a feasibility study for a fire station/West Side Public Safety and EMS Response facility to be located on the west side of town. These funds would be used in conjunction with funds appropriated under Article 7 of the May 2023 Special Town Meeting.
• Another article seeks funds to be transferred to the Stabilization Fund for the Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational School Construction Project.
• One article seeks funding for public safety radio infrastructure upgrades.
• Funds to be transferred to the Other Post-Employment Benefits Trust (OPEB Trust)
• Funds to purchase various equipment for town departments
• Funds to continue the town’s ongoing program to design, construct, repair and replace parks and playgrounds in the town
• Money for repairing or replacing town water hydrants and valves
• To authorize the treasurer, with the approval of the Board of Selectmen, to borrow at 0 percent interest from the MWRA Local Pipeline Assistance Program for the purpose of designing and constructing improvements to water pipelines
• Funds to prepare a new or update the town’s existing Water Distribution Report
• Funds for the design and construction of capital improvements to the town’s sewer system
• Funds for the planning and design of capital improvements to the town’s water booster stations
• Funds for the planning, design and construction of capital improvements to town-owned bridges
• Funds for planning and design of capital improvements to town-owned dams