Boxborough Planning Board Votes 5-0 to Advance MBTA Zoning Fix

Planning Board · Meeting of August 3, 2026

Boxborough Planning Board votes 5-0 to fix an MBTA zoning error without adding new land. The board closed a public hearing 4-0-1, with Rebecca Verner abstaining, then voted unanimously to recommend "Alternative One" to fall town meeting, raising written density on its existing MBTA Communities Overlay District from 13 to 17 units per acre and its affordability requirement from 10 percent to 20 percent. Three Hill Road-area property owners asked the board to add their land instead; member Mark White said the "hug-your-lawyer-today" pace of new state Chapter 40A changes made expansion too risky right now.

The board also voted 5-0 twice to schedule August 31 public hearings on a Chapter 40A bylaw update and a temporary data center moratorium, the latter championed by Clerk Chris Dowdy to avoid catching non-data-center, data-heavy employers like Cisco and Medtronic in overly broad language.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,581 words

Source: the Planning Board meeting of August 3, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.