Opening remarks:
In opening remarks to the May 12 and May 19, 2025 Acton Select Board meeting following the ICE action on May 10, a resident asked the Board for details regarding the Acton Police duty to respond to requests for assistance from other law enforcement agencies, and questioned the legality of the arrests. Select Board member Jim Snyder-Grant commended Acton Exchange reporter Greg Jarboe for his coverage of the events.
Housing Production Plan (HPP) review: The Planning Board joined the Select Board’s May 12 and May 19 meetings to review and approve the 2025-2030 Draft Housing Production Plan (HPP) for submission to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC). After robust discussion with residents, both boards, and consultants from JM Goldson, the draft plan was approved by both boards on May 19.
Acton Planning director Kristen Guichard began the presentation, noting that, after adoption of the 2020 HPP, Acton has now exceeded the 10% subsidized housing inventory (SHI) goal specified by Massachusetts Chapter 40B. She introduced Goldson consultants Jenn Goldson and Noah Harper, noting their work on both the HPP and on the Habitat for All zoning plan that was recently passed at Town Meeting. Ms. Guichard contributed a recent Acton Exchange “Backgrounder,” What is a Housing Production Plan and why does Acton need to update it?. There, she writes that an HPP is defined by state regulations, and that having 10% of Acton’s housing designated on the SHI as affordable allows greater local control of zoning. Ms. Goldson added that above the 10% SHI an HPP is entirely voluntary, but that below that threshold, having an HPP allows more local zoning control, and Ms. Guichard said that having an HPP was advantageous in certain grant applications.
Most discussion was centered on the draft HPP’s Chapter 2, “Housing Goals and Strategies” that identifies nine goals, and a matrix of strategies towards those goals. The goals can be summarized as follows:
- Affordability and Accessibility
- maintaining and expanding affordable housing
- supporting vulnerable residents
- create diverse housing types
- establish capital reserves for repairs
- Infrastructure and Sustainability
- address infrastructure constraints (water, wastewater, electric)
- promote energy-efficient, climate-resilient housing
- Smart Growth and Land Use
- promote compact, mixed-use development in walkable areas
- balance housing with open space preservation
- Community Capacity and Engagement
- hold intramunicipal meetings with community engagement.
Beyond those details, the plan’s chapters include: an Acton “Demographic Profile”; “Housing Conditions”, a data-rich assessment of Acton’s housing; “Development Landscape”, again a data-rich summary of environmental, infrastructural, and cultural factors that constrain development; and finally “Local Capacity”, a listing of housing-relevant departments, agencies, and organizations.
Fossil Fuel Waivers redux: Following prior discussions of waivers from Acton’s Fossil Fuel Free bylaw, the Board heard a waiver request on May 12 and approved the waiver on May 19. On May 12, without the applicant present, the Board briefly reviewed a waiver request to allow gas stove use for traditional food preparation. Nominally equivalent electrical heating was mentioned but the issue was rescheduled for the May 19 meeting. On May 19 the applicant described traditional cooking and mentioned older relatives who might have difficulty adapting to alternative methods. The Board voted 3-2 to approve the waiver, allowing the applicant to use a propane-fueled stove.
Fire Department Staffing Pilot: The Acton Fire Department’s initial pilot program, which staffed two of the town’s four fire stations to optimize firefighter and emergency medical services (EMS) personnel and equipment allocation, has concluded. The program, which began February 10, placed five personnel at South Acton station (School Street) and five at North Acton station (Harris Street), splitting the town along Route 2 with an ambulance at each station.
At the May 12 Select Board meeting, Town Manager John Mangiaratti announced the next phase, starting May 18, which staffs three stations: four personnel at North Acton, three at South Acton, and three at West Acton (Central Street). This redistributes responsibilities from the two-station model to maintain comparable town coverage while addressing space constraints at South Acton station, which was not designed for five personnel and felt cramped during the pilot. The recently built North Acton station, however, proved well-suited for its staffing level.
Mr. Mangiaratti reported satisfactory response times, citing effective handling of serious incidents, such as a fire on Arlington Street. The Collins Center at UMass Boston is assisting with the evaluation, analyzing response data, internal and external surveys (with over 350 responses collected), and operational feedback. A public hearing in June will share findings and gather community input. The three-station model will run for at least three months to assess its effectiveness, with considerations for facility adequacy and potential station renovations to support optimal operations.
Financial matters: During brief introductory remarks at the May 12 meeting, on a request to the Board for approval of a $6,150,000 municipal bond, Town Manager John Mangiaratti and Finance Director Marianne Fleckner announced that the Town’s AAA rating had been reaffirmed by Standard and Poors (now S&P Global Ratings).
The bond issue will fund projects that were already approved at Town Meetings, including the Wetherbee Conservation land purchase, the Forest Road shared fuel depot, Complete Streets, and other initiatives. Ms. Fleckner stated that the 15-year bond was sold to Raymond James & Associates, Inc. at a favorable effective interest rate of 3.517%.
Town Hall HVAC system: After Project A within Article 6 was not approved at Town Meeting, on May 12 Mr. Mangiaratti described replacement of the town hall’s HVAC system and emergency standby generator as a health and safety measure due to air quality concerns. The project, at 25% design, was to be funded 60-70% from general fund borrowing and the rest from the energy efficiency fund. To maintain momentum, on May 19 Mr. Mangiaratti requested an allocation of $250,000 from the energy efficiency fund, writing in his memo “Completing this phase will allow us to place the project out to bid, obtain updated construction costs, and return to Town Meeting with a fully informed construction funding request.” The Board unanimously approved the allocation.
Briefly noted:
May 12: Following the Town Meeting votes, the Board requested enabling legislation for the Home Rule Petitions that were passed at Town Meeting – Article 11 (Acton Memorial Library), Article 34 (Checkout Bag Charge) and Article 35 (Public Safety Residency Radius).
As is its custom, the Board reorganized its structure following the Town Election and Town Meeting, electing Dean Charter as chair, Alissa Nicol as vice-chair, and David Martin as clerk – all by unanimous vote.
May 19: The Board approved a request from the Acton Community Housing Corporation for Funding $60,000 for Habitat for Humanity-North Central MA Affordable Housing Project at 416 Great Road in Acton (formerly the site of Le Lyonnais restaurant).
The Board approved an “Authorization for Execution of Documents Related to Wetherbee Conservation Restriction (CR) Closing” (no documents were provided).
Hearings:
- On May 12 a Livery License was granted to Anu’s Transportation.
- A Common Victualler and Carry In Alcoholic Beverage License was granted on May 19 to Acton Seafood Company (the former Twin Seafoods), 541 Mass Ave, Acton .
- After extensive discussion that included objections, National Grid obtained Select Board approval to replace sections of natural gas pipeline on Arlington Street and on Central Street.
Tom Beals is the Select Board beat reporter for the Acton Exchange.