MARBLEHEAD — The Supreme Judicial Court released a statement last Wednesday regarding the case between Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell and the town of Milton surrounding the MBTA zoning law, which will allow a grace period for Marblehead.
The law states each MBTA community must have at least one zoning district where multi-family housing is permitted as of right. The housing must have a minimum density of 15 units per acre, be no more than 0.5 miles away from a commuter station, have no age restrictions, and be suitable for families with children.
The town of Milton was initially in compliance with the law as they submitted an action plan in January 2023 and later passed the bylaw at a town meeting in December. It was not until 3 weeks later the town petitioned for a referendum vote which the Select Board scheduled for February 2024.
On Feb. 14 the town held the revote that voted down the bylaw by roughly 8 percentage points.
After the vote, the attorney general filed against Milton. Shortly afterward, Milton responded by filing a counterclaim. At this time the Supreme Judicial Court was asked to determine whether the act and its corresponding guidelines are constitutional and valid and whether the attorney general has the authority to sue and enforce the law on towns that do not comply.
“We conclude that the act is constitutional and that the attorney general has the power to enforce it,” the Supreme Judicial Court statement said. “However, because the HLC did not comply with the Administrative Procedure Act when promulgating the guidelines, they are ineffective.”
This means that while the attorney general does have the power to enforce the law on towns that choose not to comply, the guidelines have been ruled ineffective, which requires the process of promulgating the guidelines to regulations.
What does this mean for the town of Marblehead?
Regarding the law, Marblehead is categorized as an adjacent community to the towns of Salem and Swampscott which are commuter rail communities. Marblehead was supposed to adopt the zoning law by Dec. 31, but they did not.
This placed the town at risk of losing grants that were permitted for the use of complying with the law. After the ruling, it’s clear the town could face more legal action for noncompliance.
At the May town meeting, Marblehead residents voted down adopting the law in a 377 – 410 vote. Some of the community members wanted to wait for the hearing from the Milton/attorney general case.
With the hearing completed and the conclusion that the law can and will be enforced once the guidelines are promulgated, it is now a decision of how to comply with the law while also following democratic practices.
At the Select Board meeting on last Wednesday, Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer briefly addressed the statement and results from court hearing during his town update.
“We’re back into compliance for now,” Kezer said. “We need to move forward at town meeting, we only have one shot a year to put in place the zoning.”
Kezer explained that the process of promulgating the guidelines will take roughly 3 months; therefore, Marblehead finds itself back into compliance with the law during that time frame.
The Planning Board is currently in the process of preparing for town meeting based on the reports Kezer has been given. The plan that was given last year is the plan that is being put forth.
“What it means for Marblehead, to me, is that we need to move forward to try to get the zoning in place,” Kezer said. “Then we can adjust accordingly going forward to whatever regulation changes or changes to the parameters [are put in place].”
Marblehead may be off the hook for the next couple of months, but the vote at town meeting in May will ultimately decide whether the town stays in compliance.
