Planning Board Reviews Draft Overlay Zoning for 700-Acre Northern Hubbardston Parcel

HUBBARDSTON — January 22, 2026 — Hubbardston Planning Board worked through a draft zoning overlay for roughly 700 acres in the town's northern section, funded by a $50,000 state rural development grant. Board member Alan Carpenter led an extended line-by-line review of the proposed R2GO overlay with consultant Brian Kramer of Niche Engineering, raising questions about open-space permanence, density calculations, and the legal relationship between the new overlay and the town's existing aquifer protection district. Chair Kristofer Munroe called the potential conflict between the two overlays "at best confusing, at worst challengeable as arbitrary and capricious." The draft, if ultimately adopted, would introduce multifamily housing as a permitted use in Hubbardston for the first time. Kramer said he would revise the draft based on the board's feedback, with town counsel review and a formal public hearing process to follow.