Wisdom in Weston

REGIS COLLEGE in Weston has unveiled an exciting proposal for housing that would connect elderly people to the intellectual life of the school. Rather than fighting in court, the town should negotiate to reserve some of the housing for Weston retirees.

Instead the neighbors are up in arms against the plan, and the town zoning board unanimously turned down the 362-unit development last week. Opponents argued that the four 10- and 11-story buildings would be too big for the area, which is zoned for single-family homes. Public safety issues, especially an increase in traffic, and added stress on the sewerage system are also concerns.

Since the residents would mostly be retired, there would not be any mass exodus to and from the development at rush hour. And the residents would not generate many police calls. Regis, unlike the rest of Weston, is connected to the metropolitan sewerage system, but it needs to negotiate an expansion of capacity or build a treatment plant on the site.

The housing would be built on the 59-acre east campus, now undeveloped green space. Regis would preserve 36 acres, unbuildable because of wetlands. The housing would be below a hill on the remaining 23 acres. It is understandable that neighbors living atop the hill would be upset by the loss of a woodland buffer, but it should be possible to minimize the impact with landscaping.

Regis began as a Catholic women's college in 1927. Single-sex schools have declined in popularity, and Regis needs to broaden its mission to insure its survival. The college ought to be able to use its undeveloped land for that purpose.

Across the nation, Several colleges have found that housing complexes connected to the campus are popular with retirees. Lasell College in Newton paved the way locally with Lasell Village, which opened in 2000. Lasell went to court after the project was rejected by Newton and won the case based on the Dover Amendment, a state law that prevents communities from using zoning to thwart the legitimate missions of schools and religious institutions.

Regis would connect residents with a special center on campus for continuing education and would train nursing, social work, and management students at the housing complex. These integrated uses give Regis a strong case, under the law, for the housing.

Weston has long lagged in providing affordable housing for its population, much of which is aging. While homes at Regis would cost more than $500,000 each, the college president, Mary Jane England, is willing to offer some of it at below-market prices. The best outcome for this not-in-my-backyard dispute would be a viable project for the college and affordable housing for the town.