1 and 3 Suburban Road
At a glance
- What: Definitive Site Plan and 'More Than One Building on a Lot' plan for 1 & 3 Suburban Road (PB-2026-073), a Wood Partners project of about 300 units.
- Where it stands: ongoing. The Planning Board ordered peer review on 2026-09-16 and continued to 2026-10-28. The Conservation Commission continued its hearing to 2026-10-05 with no vote.
- Next: further postponement is likely, since staff doubted a consultant could report back by 2026-10-28 (constructive grant deadline 2026-11-18).
Planning Board (2026-09-16)
- Many residents attended expecting a hearing.
- Public comments have been shared with the Board and developer, but oral comment is deferred until the project is ready after peer review.
- Applicant's attorney: Joshua Lee Smith.
Conservation Commission (2026-09-14)
- Wood Partners' Notice of Intent CC-2026-064 (City ordinance only) drew about 15 opponents. The work is outside the 100-foot buffer, but over 5,000 sq ft of disturbance is in the stormwater protection zone.
- Applicant presented about 300 units in three five-story buildings, 600 parking spaces, a clubhouse and pool, and shallow infiltration systems.
- Staff asked for phasing plans and more groundwater and soil data; no environmental site assessment exists.
- Diane Fratoni raised stability, maintenance and contamination concerns but said treating the filled site as wetland is outside what the Commission can decide, because it was filled before 1972 and 1990.
- Continued to 2026-10-05 with no vote.
Neighbor concerns
- Neighbors described a former dump with coal ash and possible tannery waste, and a peat layer that filters groundwater.
- Staff said anyone can file a request for determination of applicability to test jurisdiction.
Status and next steps
- Peer review ordered by the Planning Board on 2026-09-16 (stormwater design and O&M, soils and infiltration suitability, groundwater impacts).
- Planning Board continued to 2026-10-28 (constructive grant deadline 2026-11-18). Public comment there is deferred until the peer review is back.
- The Conservation Commission hearing was continued on 2026-09-14 to 2026-10-05 for revised materials, with no vote.
Discussion time
About 108 minutes across 2 meetings (from transcript timestamps; approximate).
| Meeting | Minutes |
|---|---|
| 2026-09-16 - Planning Board | 14 |
| 2026-09-14 - Conservation Commission | 94 |
Log
- 2026-09-16 - Planning Board - Item 7, taken first because many neighbors attended: described as a roughly 300-unit housing proposal on an unusual-soils site (an earlier zoning map amendment was withdrawn). Board voted 3-0 to require peer review under MGL Ch. 44, Sec. 53G, and declined to hear a presentation or public comment until it returns. Attorney Joshua Lee Smith objected and asked for 2026-10-28; Michelle M. Smith suggested 2026-11-18 (consultant contracting and a fee vote needed); Lee Smith rejected 11-18 and the Board voted 3-0 to continue to 2026-10-28 with the constructive grant deadline extended to 2026-11-18. Board agreed the peer reviewer should attend later meetings.
- 2026-09-14 - Conservation Commission - First Conservation Commission hearing (took about 1 hour 45 minutes of the recording): applicant team (VHB engineers and wetland scientist, Wood Partners) presented; staff comment letter; commissioners asked about grading toward neighbors, landscaping, snow storage and infiltration reliability; about 15 speakers opposed (contamination, peat, flooding, trees, developer record). No vote; continued to October 5.