Select Board Hears 40B Briefing on 59-Unit Essex Street Condo Proposal

HAMILTON — October 30, 2023 — Hamilton Select Board receives first briefing on a 59-unit Chapter 40B condominium application for 133 Essex Street, with a November 20 deadline to submit town comments to state reviewers. KP Law attorney Amy Kwle, retained by the town, walked the board through the Project Eligibility Letter process, noting that if Mass Housing issues the letter the applicant could file with the Zoning Board of Appeals before year's end, triggering strict 180-day hearing timelines. The proposed development — 44 market-rate units restricted to residents age 55 and older and 15 affordable units — overlaps substantially with a 50-unit project the Planning Board previously denied a special permit and storm water permit. Planning Board Chair Marne flagged two concerns with the new application: age-restriction language on the affordable units she called "a slight of hand," and the absence of deed restrictions running in perpetuity on those units. Kwle cautioned the board that the state's Housing Appeals Committee "generally does not rule in favor of municipalities," with a presumption favoring affordable housing that is "a very hard presumption to overcome."