Weston Planning Board unveils three-level zoning strategy to meet state housing mandate

WESTON — September 4, 2024 — Weston Planning Board lays out three-level Chapter 3A compliance plan ahead of fall town meeting. Chair Leslie Glynn and Town Planner Imai Yu presented a tiered zoning strategy that would designate up to 92 acres — including Boston Properties, Greatland Riverside, Maplewood, and the Whitman tennis center — as as-of-right multifamily overlay districts yielding approximately 759 units, just above the state's 750-unit threshold. The board is weighing three separate warrant articles, one per level, with language due by the end of October and public hearings beginning October 16. Vice Chair Alex Selvig questioned whether the three-article structure made sense given that full compliance requires all three to pass, while member Timothy Shawn Lanier called the tiered approach a reasonable way to gauge town appetite and preserve negotiating leverage with the state. The board also debated a hybrid accessory dwelling unit bylaw, with Lanier warning the board against requiring owner occupancy when the state's Affordable Homes Act expressly prohibits it — a self-enacting law that applies state defaults automatically if no local bylaw is adopted. The board unanimously renewed a five-year cell tower special permit for SBA Towers at the Weston police station.