A look at Shrewsbury’s MBTA zoning district that was approved by Town Meeting. (Photo/Shrewsbury Media Connection)
SHREWSBURY – Shrewsbury voters will head to the polls on Feb. 4 to determine whether the town will stick with the MBTA zoning plan approved by Town Meeting in November.
This will be the second referendum in Shrewsbury history.
The zone
Shrewsbury’s proposed MBTA zone — otherwise known as the “Transit Oriented Development Overlay District” — is a contiguous, 118-acre area located in southeast Shrewsbury that contains three main parcels: Shrewsbury Commons, 409 South Street, and Emerald Run.
As an “adjacent community” according to the MBTA Communities Act, Shrewsbury must zone to permit 1,497 housing units, which is equal to 10 percent of the town’s current housing stock. Shrewsbury only needs to zone for the units — it does not need to build them.
In an effort to lessen the potential impact of the zone, and mitigate the amount of housing that may be built, town officials zoned on pre-existing and soon-to-be-existing housing projects. Emerald Run (300 units) and 409 South Street (196 units) are both sites of future 40B developments, while Shrewsbury Commons is an existing 587-unit, 53-acre development.
Though the MBTA zone could technically accommodate 1,512 units at 15 units per acre, town officials estimate that with the pre-existing development, it’s likely that significantly fewer units would be constructed. The “net new unit” count would be approximately 426.
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Town Meeting on Nov. 18 approved the zone, 123-50, after about two hours of debate. The zone satisfies the state’s requirements under the MBTA Communities Act, the EOHLC confirmed.
Town Meeting’s approval of MBTA zoning was immediately challenged. A group of locals exercised Section 16 of Chapter 553 of the Acts of 1953, an old government statute that allows residents to call for a referendum as long as five percent of registered voters sign a petition.
On Dec. 2, the deadline for submitting the petition, residents had gathered 1,843 signatures, well above the five-percent threshold of 1,349. On Dec. 5, Town Clerk Sharyn Thomas certified the signatures of 1,706 Shrewsbury residents, prompting the referendum. Presented with four options, the Select Board chose Feb. 4 as the referendum date.
Shrewsbury had technically passed MBTA zoning in November, but since the referendum was not held prior to the state’s Dec. 31 deadline for MBTA zoning compliance, Shrewsbury entered 2025 as a non-compliant community.
What’s changed since
In the midst of the Town Meeting vote and scheduling the subsequent referendum, Massachusetts was awaiting a decision regarding a case before the Supreme Judicial Court involving the town of Milton.
Milton — which held a referendum similar to Shrewsbury’s one year ago — was challenging the extent to which the Attorney General’s office can enforce the MBTA zoning mandate.
RELATED CONTENT: After hours of debate, Shrewsbury Town Meeting adopts MBTA zoning
In a decision released in early January, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the MBTA Communities Act was constitutional, but that the existing guidelines were unenforceable. New “emergency” guidelines released by the state give “adjacent” communities until July 2025 to comply. Since the deadline has been extended, Shrewsbury is no longer noncompliant.
Proponents, opponents
Ahead of the Feb. 4 referendum, two campaign groups formed: “Community Supporters for Responsible Shrewsbury” and “Vote NO 4 Shrewsbury.”
For proponents of MBTA zoning, the choice comes down to being responsible and following state law — non-compliance may leave Shrewsbury with lawsuits and without access to 29 state grants. The proposed zone doesn’t require any housing units to be built, proponents say.
“Political activists with ideological motivations want you to think that voting ‘NO’ will stop building; it won’t. They want to ‘send a message’ to the state — a costly political point that risks the town being sued. This vote does not impact any area of town outside a small zone, where no additional development is required beyond what is already in the pipeline,” wrote Beth Shea Bryant of “Community Supporters for Responsible Shrewsbury” in the election information sent to Shrewsbury residents.
However, the opponents argue that if you zone it, developers will come. There are also concerns about overdevelopment, state overreach, strain on town infrastructure and increases in taxes. As far as discretionary grants go, opponents said they are not part of the budget — and they’re not guaranteed.
“Fear-based individuals use the affordable housing crisis, compliance and lost grants to justify a ‘YES’ vote. This act doesn’t solve the affordability crisis. It only benefits for-profit developers. Voters are being misled by politicians touting that more development will lower housing costs, it will not,” wrote Brian Costello of “Vote NO 4 Shrewsbury.”
What is on the ballot
A “YES” vote at the Feb. 4 referendum is a vote for Town Meeting’s decision to approve MBTA zoning. A “NO” vote at the Feb. 4 referendum is a vote against Town Meeting’s decision to approve MBTA zoning. Should “NO” win, the town would maintain its current zoning.
For “NO” to win the day on Feb. 4, it needs to meet two criteria. First, “NO” must receive a majority of the votes cast. Second, 20 percent of registered Shrewsbury voters must vote “NO.” In other words, “NO” may beat its opponent in votes, but if 20 percent of all the town’s voters (around 5,400 residents) don’t vote for it, “YES” wins by default.
The polls will only be open from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. For more information, visit https://shrewsburyma.gov/1463/Special-Town-Election-February-4-2025.
