Carver Planning Board explores Chapter 40R district to satisfy state housing mandate

CARVER -- January 13, 2026, Carver Planning Board opens conversation on Chapter 40R smart-growth district as alternative to MBTA Communities mandate. Consultants Judy Barrett and Lily of the Barrett Group, re-engaged under a second technical assistance grant, walked the board through the mechanics of Chapter 40R, the MBTA Communities Act, and Chapter 40B at the January 13 meeting, responding to a proposal floated by board member Alan Germain that a developer who owns roughly 30 acres behind the Noria plaza off Route 44 be invited to pursue a mixed-use 40R project, roughly 240 residential units plus commercial space, rather than proceeding independently. Barrett corrected what she called "a lot of mythology" about the Middleborough compliance precedent, noting Middleborough did agree to comply with the MBTA law by modifying its pre-existing 40R district, and cautioned the board that 40R imposes a 20-unit-per-acre minimum density for multifamily uses, higher than the MBTA law's 15, and that only the affordable units in a 40R project, capped at 20 percent of the total, count toward the town's subsidized housing inventory. She agreed to prepare a comparative matrix of the three programs and run the 40R density model against both the Noria parcel and a previously modeled Spring Street site. The board also voted unanimously to waive all non-out-of-pocket special permit filing fees for David Bastin of 15 Pleasant Street, whose year-long effort to permit an ADU for his in-laws involved three Zoning Board of Appeals appearances and referrals across multiple town departments.