Northland Project: Possible Referendum, Mayor's Opinion

NEWTON, MA — Newton mayor Ruthanne Fuller emailed the city Monday evening informing the public of a possible referendum concerning the Northland project at Needham Street and Oak Street. The area, known for years as the location of Marshall's, AAA and Paulette's Ballet Studio, was approved by the City Council for building by a 17 to 7 vote.

Northland Investment Corporation's project, which has been in the works for nearly four years, would transform three parcels in a 22.6 acre area that includes the old mill factory near the corner of Needham and Oak streets into 800 units of apartments, including 140 deemed affordable. It would also be home to a parkland, 750 new trees and a number of businesses, including local businesses, restaurant and office space and a shuttle service to link the area to the MBTA in an effort to attract non-drivers.

The City Council voted on Dec. 2 to approve the zoning required for this project. However, Newton residents are collecting signatures to require the City Council to repeal the vote, or to hold a citywide referendum over requiring the council to repeal the approved zoning, Fuller said in the email.

Opponents of the project cited transportation, traffic and impact to schools as the main reason for their opposition.

See the proposed project's plan here.

The last time such a referendum was approved was in 2007, when residents challenged the approval of the location of the new Newton North High School. That challenge failed by 2,492 votes, Fuller said.

Mayor Fuller goes on to describe how the referendum process in Newton works:

• The city's referendum process requires that five percent of the registered voters at the time of the last municipal election sign the request for a referendum. At this time, that means they require 3,032 registered voters to sign.
• Residents have 20 days from the City Council vote they're challenging, which was on Dec. 2, to collect the signatures. Those signatures are then sent to the city clerk, who verifies them. If enough signatures are collected, they expect the verification process to be done on Jan. 6, 2020.
• Voters then have two days to challenge the validity of the signatures and, if there is a challenge, the Election Commission reviews the challenged signatures. If enough signatures are verified, the Northland project will be put on hold pending the new vote, either by the City Council or a referendum.
• The council then has 30 days to repeal the approval or to set forth a referendum. To repeal the previous approval of the project requires a two-thirds vote, meaning 16 votes must go against the project. This is unlikely, as 17 had previously voted for the project. However, the mayor says, five council seats will have new members on Jan. 1, 2020. Four of the departing members voted for the project, and one against.
• The most likely outcome is that they'll have to set an election date for the referendum. This can take place on the next municipal election, in November 2021, or in a special election within 120 days, which would cost taxpayers up to $80,000, Fuller said.
• One efficient date to hold an election would be on Tuesday, March 3, 2020, while voters are already voting in the presidential primary.

Mayor Fuller supports upholding the zoning approval, allowing the Northland project to continue:

Like many of us in Newton, I have concerns about approving new development unless it is right for the surrounding neighborhood/village and right for our city as a whole. I know traffic is a real problem in Newton too much of the time. I can see that buildings in new developments in neighboring cities and towns are often poorly designed and out of scale. I spend a lot of time analyzing the condition and enrollment capacity of our schools and I know we will continue to have to invest heavily in our school buildings. I am keenly aware that Northland has been approved even as other developments are under consideration now and in the coming months.

Yet, even in light of these realities, I am now convinced that this Northland project will be good for Needham Street, for Newton Upper Falls and for Newton.

Fuller says the city "can and should do something better with these 22.6 acres," noting the site now consists of She invited residents to drive or walk around the area "and see for yourself."

The new site would include greens and a spray park and playground with 750 new trees.

Related:

• Northland Project Approved, But Newton Group Plans To Fight It
• Newton's Northland Project Decision Postponed To December
• Newton City Council Approves Northland Project
• Newton Upper Falls Edges Closer To Major Makeover

Fuller supports the 140 apartments for people on tight incomes. "Those affordable apartments are guaranteed to be here in perpetuity and will allow us to welcome to Newton so many people that are often excluded because of the high cost of our housing," Fuller said.

"I am continuously struck by the deep love of all of us for this good city. Let’s treat our neighbors with respect during these discussions about Northland and ascribe good intentions and good motives to all," Fuller said in the email.

She gave more reasons describing why she supports the project:

• One of the apartment buildings will also be a first for Newton, built for “age-in-community” living using universal design and ADA accessibility standards and designed for people of all ages and abilities.

• The former Saco Pettee Mill (that previously housed Clarks Shoes and Paulette’s Ballet Studio) will be historically preserved and repurposed for office space.

• The project includes not only a mix of retail, restaurants, offices and apartments but also Northland is required to set aside retail space for locally-owned, non-chain merchants.

• The residents, employees and visitors not just at Northland but from Upper Falls and along Needham Street for the first time will be able to hop on a free, electric shuttle that will run every 10 minutes, 16 hours a day, 7 days a week to the Newton Highlands T stop.

• The City Council imposed a maximum number of car trips on Northland. The City of Newton Planning Department will strictly monitor new car trips against this standard and will require changes and/or additional funding from Northland if it doesn’t meet the required traffic level.

• MassDOT is just about to invest $30.5 million in reconstructing Needham Street/Highland Avenue with smarter traffic signals, fewer curb cuts, better sidewalks and protected bike lanes. After this work, Needham Street will continue to sometimes have heavy and slow traffic. However, for the first time, it will be inviting for pedestrians and bicyclists and, with the Northland shuttle, be connected to public transit, the MBTA stop at Newton Highlands, with frequent and free service.

• Almost every parking space will be underground and the City Council insisted on the right number of spaces (not too many and not too few).

• The buildings themselves are required to meet stringent green standards. At least three of them are being built to “passive house” certification levels, making the project a leader in Massachusetts in sustainable development. All of them will meet LEED requirements. Plus, the project includes solar panels, rainwater harvesting, electric vehicle charging stations, electric-only appliances, and plenty of parking for bicycles.

• The design and scale of the buildings themselves were scrutinized and, with a lot of input, changed to work for people walking and biking and for the adjacent neighborhood. Good design principles were incorporated, including breaking up the mass of the buildings.

• Northland is investing heavily in Newton above and beyond the initiatives already mentioned. Another $9.3 million will be invested in upgrades in the neighborhood for transportation ($5 million), sewer system improvements ($1.85 million), renovations to the nearby Countryside Elementary School ($1.5 million), and a spray park/splash pad for little ones by the Upper Falls Greenway ($1 million). (As an aside, Northland is headquartered in Newton and plans to relocate to this site.)

• The City Council analyzed potential impacts by the project on traffic, on parking on the site and in the adjacent neighborhood, on city and school services, and on the environment. The Councilors insisted that the developer design the project and contribute funding that addressed these impacts both now and in the coming years in a comprehensive and enforceable manner.

• The project kept getting better. Listening to the neighbors (300+ meetings and 12 public hearings) and City Councilors, Northland reduced the size from 2 million square feet to 1.1 million square feet to right size it for this location.

• Over the 18 months of active revisions, negotiations and compromises, the Northland project kept getting more and more aligned with the goals set out in the Needham Street Area Vision Plan, a proactive plan finished in August 2018 and written by a broad range of Newton community members. The plan called for just what Northland is delivering. Here is an excerpt. (The full plan can be found here.)