Essex Planning Board Advances Nine Zoning Articles for November 17 Town Meeting

ESSEX — October 15, 2025 — Essex Planning Board advances nine zoning articles for November 17 special town meeting, including a key MBTA compliance measure. The board held a public hearing Wednesday on the package, which includes a proposal to amend the downtown district's residential multifamily rules — eliminating the 10,000-square-foot minimum lot area and raising the as-of-right unit count from four to six — to meet the state's MBTA Communities Act density requirement of 15 units per acre. Town Planner Val Massard, appearing remotely, noted that the state's compliance model excludes wetlands, and that the revised approach reduces the theoretical maximum buildout compared to earlier projections; she emphasized "none of this has to be built — it just has to be zoning possible." Town Administrator Brendan Zabriskie provided a list of state grant programs Essex stands to lose if it fails to comply, several of which the town has already tapped. The board, which will vote on all nine articles at its November 5 meeting, also unanimously endorsed an Approval Not Required plan for King's Court, creating three lots from two existing parcels for the 163 Avenue Trust.