SHREWSBURY — A developer’s intention to build a 300-unit multifamily housing project that would be hemmed in by Interstate 290, Main Street and North Quinsigamond Avenue has raised concerns among town leaders about environmental impact and the quality of life for possible renters.
At a Dec. 17 Select Board meeting, members unanimously signed a letter to MassHousing to voice those concerns, with Town Manager Kevin J. Mizikar calling the development an “unfriendly” 40B project.
The project includes a large building with a garage that Hingham-based Saxon Partners want to erect on a 3.22-acre parcel at 104 Main St., currently an open lot used for truck and car parking.
Among other concerns, Board Member Beth N. Casavant said that the parcel of land contains debris, the cleanup of which the developer has not addressed in its plans to the town.
Mizikar said Saxon’s plans pose public safety and life safety issues with first-responder access, among others.
“On and off over the last year or so, we’ve been telling the developer that this project cannot work because of…most of the concerns we’re sharing here,” Mizikar said. “They’ve never revised the plans or come back to the table with alternatives or solutions that takes these challenges into account.