GREENFIELD, MA (FRANKLIN COUNTY NOW) — Thursday’s Greenfield Zoning Board of Appeals meeting was filled to capacity with community members who came for the public hearing of the special permit application for a 34 unit multi-family development on Stone Farm Lane.
The project will need several zoning variances to move forward, which will have to be approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals. The nearly 8 acre property is owned by the Valley Community Land Trust nonprofit organization, who, according to their website, “provide affordable access to land through long-term leases and support limited equity homeownership by separating ownership of land from ownership of homes.”
Valley Community Land Trust is leasing the property to two groups, one of which is the current applicant for special permits; Noble Homes. Their part of the project on the property will contain 22 of the 34 proposed units.
Neighbors and community members showed up in numbers for the public hearing, with some needing to remain outside of the room as the meeting reached capacity. Public comment went until 10 p.m. Thursday evening and will continue when the Board picks the hearing back up in an October meeting.
Some of the comments raised concerns about increased traffic in the area, the impact and maintenance of water and septic systems, and other factors of the project such as impacted property values and access to public trails on the adjacent FirstLight property.
