Housing Takes Center Stage at Scituate Town Meeting
Residents vote to allow Old Gates School redevelopment and adopt new accessory dwelling unit bylaw amid discussions on preserving town's character
SCITUATE - April 14 - Scituate's Annual Town Meeting approves the sale or lease of the Old Gates Intermediate School property for housing development and passes new accessory dwelling unit regulations after rejecting several proposed amendments. The meeting, lasting over three hours on April 14, features passionate discussions about housing needs, historic preservation, and community character.
The Select Board seeks authorization to sell or lease the Old Gates School property for housing development, with Board member Karen Canfield explaining the property's long history of discussion.
"In 2016, the Public Facilities Master Plan was created for all municipal buildings, and knowing that the Gates building was going to be vacated upon completion of the new middle school, it was recommended that the entire building be repurposed as a town hall, a senior center council on aging, and a school department complex, and barring that, that the building be sold," Canfield says.
Since fiscal 2018, the town has spent over $1 million in upkeep and utilities for the mostly vacant building, plus more than $100,000 on capital improvements to prevent deterioration.
After exploring multiple options, the Select Board determines that selling to a private developer is unlikely due to zoning restrictions, and renovating the building for municipal use would cost an estimated $50-60 million.
"The board feels very strongly that the cost to taxpayers to invest 50, 60 million dollars in the old gates on top of the Hatherly and Cushing school override, the water treatment plant override, public safety complex override, and the middle school override, and the future investments that we're going to need to make... makes reuse of this facility just far too expensive," Canfield explains.
The town receives a proposal from the developers of Lawson Green, an existing affordable senior housing project in town, to develop senior housing on the site. The article authorizes the Select Board to negotiate for housing development but doesn't approve any specific proposal.
Andrea Hunt of Mann Lot Road expresses concern about the historic value of the building.
"This school means an awful lot to an awful lot of people, and it is one of our few historic buildings that we still have standing," Hunt says. "I don't think it's fair to the community without having the citizens be able to say whether or not they actually want this historic building removed."
A motion to indefinitely postpone the article fails, and the main motion passes with the required two-thirds majority.
The meeting also approves new accessory dwelling unit (ADU) regulations to comply with the state's Affordable Homes Act, which became effective February 2, 2025. The Planning Board presents changes that allow ADUs by right in single-family zoning districts with reasonable restrictions.
Rebecca Lewis of the Planning Board explains, "The changes in this article allow for the town to situate to become compliant with the Affordable Homes Act and is implementing regulations."
The new regulations permit ADUs up to 900 square feet or half the size of the principal dwelling (whichever is smaller) by right, with site plan review. The bylaw prohibits short-term rentals of less than 31 days for ADUs and requires no additional parking for units within half a mile of public transportation.
Maryanne Lewis of Lighthouse Road proposes three amendments to the ADU bylaw, all of which fail. The first would remove site plan review requirements, which Lewis calls "onerous, costly, burdensome, overwhelming."
Patricia Lambert, representing the Planning Board, defends site plan review: "Why we want a site plan review is to make sure that it is in keeping with the characteristic of the town and that your neighbors know what is going on next door to them across the street or in the next bar. It is not onerous. We are watching out for the development in the town."
The second amendment would have removed the prohibition on short-term rentals, and the third would have changed the definition of cooking/kitchen facilities.
The main motion on ADU regulations passes by majority vote.
Other significant items approved at the meeting include:
- A $13.4 million capital improvement plan
- The $102.3 million fiscal year 2026 operating budget
- Community preservation funding for basketball/pickleball courts, the SAIL housing project, and Bates House rehabilitation
- Amendments to the town's general bylaws regarding abandoned buildings
- An increase in beach parking fines from $50 to $150
- Special legislation for sidewalk betterments
The meeting also recognizes retiring Select Board members Karen Canfield and Karen Connolly for their service to the town, as well as retiring Town Moderator James Toomey.