Tewksbury Boards Agree to Pursue MBTA Compliance District at Lodge, Clark Road

TEWKSBURY — March 25, 2026 — Tewksbury's Select Board and Planning Board reached a working consensus to pursue MBTA Communities Act compliance using the Ames Pond Lodge property and a Clark Road parcel as a two-part zoning district. The joint session Wednesday followed an executive session with legal counsel on the state's pending lawsuit against the town, which has cost Tewksbury more than $1.7 million in denied or withheld grants since a 2024 town meeting rejected a prior zoning proposal. Town Planner Alexandra Lauder told the boards that the Lodge property, estimated at roughly 26 eligible acres after resource areas are removed, already meets the act's 15-unit-per-acre density threshold — meaning rezoning it would not create practical capacity for new construction beyond a one-for-one replacement. Select Board Vice Chair Eric Ryder and Planning Board Chair Steve Johnson guided the technical debate, with Johnson warning that continued inaction risks a state-imposed zone with no local input. The boards directed Lauder to analyze both parcels and submit a proposal to the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments for modeling, with a follow-up meeting targeted for approximately two weeks out; any final plan must go before town meeting for a resident vote.