Article 35 Forest Ridge
The sponsors of Article 35 have asked that consideration of their proposal be indefinitely postponed. It will not be debated at this Fall Town Meeting. However, I am submitting these notes because I expect that a revised proposal may come before Town Meeting in the future, and I think it useful to document the questions that I have listed below so that they can be answered at that time.
I am leaning in favor of buying and conserving the Forest Ridge property, but the current proposal is not ready for a Town Meeting vote. It is missing important information that Town Meeting members need to make a well-informed decision.
Site. The site not development-friendly. It is all rock. There are wetlands on the upland east side toward the Stoneham line and Fallon Road. From there the land drops 40-50 feet to Forest Circle and Polk Road on the west side. During heavy rain, stormwater cascades off the ridge, down the rock walls, and floods Forest Circle and Polk Road on its way to lower Forest Street and the Sawmill Brook Road culvert.
Development History. There have been just two proposals to develop the site in the prior 20 years.
In 2005-2006, when I was on the Planning Board, the Marino Group petitioned the Planning Board for approval of a subdivision with 17 single-family houses. Their proposal was painfully incomplete, missing critical information, especially about neighborhood impacts, so we commissioned peer-review engineering and traffic studies. The engineers told us the developer would need to drill and blast for foundations, for water and sewer lines (all the way to Forest Street because the existing Forest Circle lines would not support the additional demand), for a roadway, and especially, for large stormwater retention basins. Construction would very expensive and disruptive to the neighborhood. The Mario Group withdrew.
In 2015-2016, when I was on the Select Board, the Krebs Investor Group proposed a five-story, 296-unit apartment building on the site as a 40B affordable housing project. They planned to access the site from Fallon Road, bridge the wetlands, blast the entire site level, and blast a secondary road connecting to Forest Circle. As with the Marino proposal, the Krebs proposal was woefully incomplete, and again, we commissioned peer reviews. We found they did not have legal access from Fallon Rd. The Stoneham Conservation Commission said "No" to paving the wetlands. We said "Absolutely No" to extensive blasting, and we rejected the secondary road as steeper than a bobsled run. Krebs withdrew.
Who are the “interested developers?” We have been told that developers are interested in the site and that we must buy the property immediately. Who are the “interested developers?” This is not a development-friendly site. There is no indication that scores of developers (or even one) are waiting anxiously to develop the site. The current owner appears most interested in selling, not developing, the site.
Is the price realistic? We are told we should pay $3M for the site. But if access is very difficult and construction is prohibitively expensive, is it really worth $3M? We need a realistic appraisal, especially if the property is to be conserved as open space.
How are we negotiating the purchase? We are told that the Town has had exploratory discussions with the land owner. If so, why does the motion before Town Meeting appear to commit us to a $3M price? Showing your hand before real-estate negotiations begin is generally not good practice.
Are there other funding sources? We are told we should fund the entire purchase using free cash and WCCP funds. Have we looked at other funding possibilities, such as a grant or matching funds from DCR given that the site is a direct extension of the Middlesex Fells? We may be looking at an override in 2026. We should know if there are cost-effective options.
What is the WCCP’s role? We are told the deal is contingent on WCCP committing $1.5M of CPA funds to the purchase. The WCCP may well agree to contribute funds, but why is the responsibility for a final decision being foisted on the WCCP? The decision to buy and conserve this land should be a decision made by Town Meeting after the WCCP has made a decision and recommendation to Town Meeting about their participation.
Bottom Line. We should consider buying and conserving the Forest Ridge property, but the current proposal is incomplete and flawed. Town Meeting should not be asked to vote on a half-baked proposal. Town Meeting members should see the whole deal before Town Meeting votes.
