Small town, big decision

Meeting to preview major development

Smart growth or dumb idea?

Developer Douglas A. King's Queset Commons is one of the biggest projects in Easton's history, proposed for some 50 acres off Route 138, across from the intersection of Belmont Street.

Queset Commons could be considered a "smart growth" project because it incorporates residential and commercial space and is close to public transportation, a concept encouraged by the state. The town could receive some $1 million in incentives from the state for approving the project.

But a group representing nearby residents says Queset Commons would change the character of both the neighborhood and the town, and isn't worth the trade-off.

"This development is not good planning and is not 'smart growth,' " said Diane Howard, a member of the Eisenhower Drive Neighborhood Association. "It is dumb growth and will change the basic characteristics of the town."

Town officials plan an informational meeting on the Queset Commons project Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Olmstead-Richardson School cafeteria. Colleen Corona, chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen, said the meeting will give an overview and answer questions residents may have before the annual Town Meeting votes on the project on May 19.

Corona said the meeting also will allow town officials to outline their support for the massive development. "There's a large group of people supporting this, and we want to explain why," she said.

The state Department of Housing and Community Development is considering whether to declare the project "smart growth." Town officials said they've received indications that the state agency will approve the designation, possibly this week.

But the voters who attend Town Meeting will have the final say. They will be asked to create a so-called overlay district that would amend the zoning in the area to allow the type of mixed use that is proposed.

Queset Commons would include 280 rental and condominium units, 161 of which would count toward the town's affordable housing stock. King also plans 103,000 square feet of commercial space, including retail space and office buildings, and a 900-car underground parking garage.

Howard said the development would bring too much traffic to Easton, and would be dangerously close to the town's wells. She also said the project would encourage similar developments that would ultimately overwhelm Easton.

Supporters of the project argue that Easton needs to welcome development to increase its tax base, and that the mixed-use proposal would be suitable for the site off Route 138. The area is close to highways, Brockton Area Transit plans to extend a bus line to the development, and Stonehill College is nearby.

Corona said the ongoing discussions with King have allowed the town to have a say in the project that it might not otherwise.

Town officials have already drafted a development agreement with King that includes additional incentives for the town if the project is approved. The developer would make $1 million in traffic improvements, with the installation of new traffic signals, on Route 138. He would renovate and expand a nearby fire station. And, he plans to construct a waste-water treatment plant with a capacity exceeding what his project would need, with the intent of letting the town use the plant for future projects. The town only has a septic system.

Under any other type of project, the town would have no say in the plans, Corona said. She noted that the plans have been approved by the Board of Selectmen, Finance Committee, School Committee and Planning Board.

"In this case, you get to show [voters] this is what's going to happen," Corona said.

Town Administrator David Colton said the town should accept the King proposal, saying Easton must find new ways to generate revenue. The May 19 vote amounts to a decision of whether the town wants growth at all, he said.

"The scope of the decision is big. The town needs to enhance its tax base, in a smart way like this," he said. "If this isn't [smart], then what is?"

A cost analysis commissioned by the town showed that Easton would receive far more in revenue from the project than it would spend on related expenses such as school and public safety costs, for a 40 percent profit.

In an interview last week, King said that the mixed-use theme is the wave of the future in development in Massachusetts, and across the country. Long gone are the developments of massive housing projects with no infrastructure. Today, people want walking plazas like the downtowns of urban areas long ago.

"It gives you a development where you can live, work, shop, and play," he said. "This will be a walkable neighborhood, where people can go get an ice cream, go get a sandwich, go shopping, or go see a doctor."

For the past two years, he's been pitching the plans to town boards and officials, incorporating the town's needs while promoting the development. "The most important thing I realized," King said, "is it had to be a good deal for Easton, as well as a good deal for me." And soon, those plans will go before voters.

"I think that when this is approved, and built, it will be welcome," King said.