Hamilton Boards Review 3A Zoning Drafts, Eye June Town Meeting Vote

HAMILTON -- April 29, 2025, Hamilton Planning and Select boards reviewed a second draft of 3A-compliant downtown zoning at a joint April 29 remote meeting, with a June 26 special town meeting vote as the target deadline. Consultants Matt and Zoe from UTL walked the boards through proposed amendments covering five town center subdistricts and a new Asbury Street multi-family overlay, collectively designed to meet a state-required minimum of roughly 731 housing units across approximately 49 acres. The boards voted to keep Carriage Lane parcels in the Bay Road Mixed-Use District as drafted, while agreeing that the special-permit trigger for Depot Square redevelopment should be set "much, much lower" than the current 80-foot frontage line to maximize town control over the Crosby's Marketplace site. A proposed sunset clause modeled on Wenham's language, which would automatically void the 3A overlay if state law is overturned, was held for review by town counsel after members raised concerns the Attorney General could strike it, leaving residents with a false sense of protection. Select Board Chair Bill Olson confirmed the town is on a "dual path," pursuing both 3A compliance and legal options similar to Wenham's Essex Superior Court challenge, with a public meeting on the litigation question set for the following Monday. The Planning Board re-elected Marnie Crouch as Chair and Amal Dahlquist as Vice Chair, and authorized the pair to meet informally with Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary representative Merwin Walters, who has presented a seminary-drafted overlay district proposal.