Local News
The zoning measure failed by a vote of 520 to 257.
Holden once again rejected a proposal to comply with the MBTA Communities Act on Monday, and now faces legal action from the Attorney General. Kayana Szymczak for the Boston Globe
March 3, 2026 | 4:24 PM
3 minutes to read
Holden voters have once again rejected a proposal to comply with the state’s MBTA Communities Act, voting down Article 2 at a Special Town Meeting on Monday, March 2, 2026.
The measure failed by a vote of 520 to 257, according to Town Manager Peter Lukes.
“This was the second attempt to pass a [MBTA Communities Act] compliant zoning overlay and with the margin of loss I’d say it’s pretty clear where Holden voters stand,” Lukes said in an e-mail statement to Boston.com. “They were well informed as to everything involved in this process through community outreach meetings, media, social media, and word of mouth for the last year and especially over the last six months, and they still rejected it,” he added.
The proposal marked Holden’s second unsuccessful effort to comply with the state’s MBTA Communities Act, also known as “3A.”
Voters previously rejected a 3A zoning measure — Article 37 — at the May 19, 2025 Annual Town Meeting. After the town missed its end of 2025 compliance deadline, Holden was one of 12 communities deemed noncompliant with the law. Andrea Campbell later sued nine of those 12 towns, including Holden.
-
Attorney General sues 9 towns for noncompliance with MBTA zoning law
-
12 Mass. towns missed the MBTA Communities zoning deadline. What happens now?
What did Article 2 propose?
Article 2 would have created two multifamily overlay districts — one at 2077 Main Street and another at Newbury Drive — designed to meet the law’s requirements. The MBTA Communities Act requires Holden to zone for at least 750 housing units across 50 acres, at a minimum density of 15 units per acre.
The proposed 2077 Main Street overlay included 39.13 acres of total land, with 23.03 buildable acres. Town estimates projected a gross density of 25.5 units per acre and a potential capacity of 587 units.
The site is located at what William Holmes, a member of the Board of Selectmen and the town’s MBTA Communities Working Group, described as “effectively an active quarry” called Trap Rock.
The working group — formed after the town’s first failed 3A vote in May 2025 — included town officials and residents who selected the proposed overlay sites. Holmes said the quarry location was chosen to achieve what he described as “paper compliance,” meaning it would satisfy state requirements without likely resulting in any actual development.
“Any kind of developer would have to set a pile of money on fire to do anything there,” Holmes said, referring to the quarry site.
He also described the site as “almost comically inhospitable to building” and said he hoped skeptical voters would support the measure.
“It’s frustrating to feel that you put so much effort in and then had it all blow up like that,” he said.
The second proposed overlay, at Newbury Drive, encompassed 11.5 acres and was projected to allow 15.2 units per acre, with an estimated capacity of 172 units.
Together, the two districts would have allowed for an estimated 759 units — enough to meet the state’s 750-unit requirement.
What comes next for Holden?
Despite the outcome of Monday’s town meeting, Holmes said he was proud of the working group’s efforts.
“I think everyone feels good that they earnestly worked to help the town navigate this situation. We’re not happy with the outcome, but we’re happy with the process, at least,” Holmes said.
The town now faces legal consequences for remaining out of compliance.
With the second failed vote, Lukes said he expects action from the Attorney General’s Office.
“We expect that the Attorney General will serve us with the complaint that is currently pending against eight other towns who are also non-compliant,” Lukes said.
He added that the town is uncertain about its next steps, “other than to defend the Town against the lawsuit and see what comes of it.”
As of March 3, there were no upcoming hearings scheduled in the case, according to the court docket.
Annie Jonas is a Community writer at Boston.com. She was previously a local editor at Patch and a freelancer at the Financial Times.
Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
