Mayor offers to fund Medford’s rezoning project — on one condition

The mayor said Wednesday, in a proposal to the City Council, that she was prepared to reboot funding for the council’s multi-year citywide rezoning effort, but they had to do one thing first: rezone the Salem Street corridor from Mixed Use 2 (MX2) back to Mixed Use 1 (MX1). Which did not sit well with several of the councilors.

“I will be damned if I throw away our only leverage for a better, slower, more accessible, more successful process, just because she is attempting to do goodwill toward the councilors now that the election is over, and making promises that she has no reason to keep,” said City Councilor Kit Collins.

Councilor Anna Callahan said she was deeply frustrated by the request.

“The number one thing in between us and having housing that matches what our seniors need, having walkable neighborhoods, having vibrant squares, the number one thing in between where we are now, and that vision is our 37-year-old zoning, so the idea that if we don’t vote in favor of one tiny change on one corner, because the mayor wants us to, that she will tank the entire zoning project, that does not sit well with me,” said Callahan.

The rezoning project came to a standstill in September when the contract with Innes Associates, the consultant that had been partnering with the city, expired.

Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn has offered to extend the contract, effectively restarting the project if the council votes to change the zoning at the intersection of Park and Salem streets. 

The difference between MX1 and MX2 zoning, according to Senior City Planner Danielle Evans, who presented Lungo-Koehn’s proposal, is essentially two stories and a medical office.

MX1 would allow four-story buildings and a medical office. MX2 would allow six-story buildings, a brewery tap room by right, and a more clearly defined “neighborhood medical office,” she said.

Councilor Emily Lazzaro suggested they stop talking around the pretense of a medical office and call it what it is, a possible methadone clinic.

Lazzaro said there was a company that wanted to open a clinic for “medication assisted treatment, including suboxone and methadone,” which would be allowable under MX2 zoning but not MX1. 

“And that is why we are being asked to change this intersection from MX2  with two extra stories, which nobody, I think, cares about,” she said. “I think what everybody cares about is that we never have the possibility of there ever being any doctor’s office at this intersection, lest there be a clinic for somebody with a drug addiction issue, and somebody with a child has to explain that addiction happens. That’s what we're talking about.”  

However, not all the councilors thought making the change was a bad idea. 

Councilor George Scarpelli said although he was not happy with the mayor, “I’ve never been, that’s public knowledge,” he was willing to agree to the rezoning because it would move the larger project forward.

He also said he supported it because the neighbors made it clear that they don’t want the MX2 zoning in their neighborhood. 

“I feel strongly that this is a move that will move us forward,” Scarpelli said. “I feel that this is an opportunity, that we secure funding to get the communication that’s needed to move the zoning forward and accomplish what we need.”

Councilor Justin Tseng said he wanted to keep an open mind, but also wanted to go on the record.

“I don’t think it’s the healthiest to dangle the fate of an important city project that has been an objective of the city across multiple administration peers, and to make that contingent on fulfilling the mayor’s priorities with one particular intersection,” he said.

Collins said she would not “kiss the ring on Park at Salem” in exchange for the mayor signing a contract extension for Innes and that while she would like to work with the mayor, she frankly no longer trusts her. 

Councilor Matt Leming said he was essentially in the same boat as Collins.

Callahan said she wants to see a public statement from Lungo-Koehn that shows council will have funding for consultants to help them for as long as it takes to zone the city, so it matches the visions that were created by the rezoning committee.

“We also need funding to do proper outreach, and that funding should be run by the City Council,” she said. “Zoning is a purview of the City Council and not the mayor.”

City Council President Zac Bears also said he’d like to see a plan from the mayor before making any decision.

What residents say

Residents were largely split on the rezoning of the already rezoned Salem Street corridor.

Cheryl Rodriguez cited parking concerns and the possibility of a methadone clinic as her reasons for favoring the original MX1 zoning. 

“We want no medical use,” she said. “It’s too close to the neighborhood and the school to be allowed … you should vote for this change because it’s the right thing to do and the more feasible option.”

Tainter Street resident Nick Uhlig believes many residents are sensationalizing the MX2 zoning issue. He said while it does allow for medical uses with restrictions, it would also require a special permit, which would trigger public participation.

“Opponents of densification have tried to claim that MX2 will somehow pose a threat to the neighborhood,” he said. “I very much disagree with this assertion, and want to remind everyone that there is no proposal whatsoever at present for a similar development anywhere in that node.”

He said it was also distressing to see the zoning negotiated via an ultimatum from the mayor and that he expected better of her and hopes she and the City Council will work together moving forward. 

Patricia Chery called out councilors for shaming people whose opinions differed from theirs. Jane Marcus also said she didn’t appreciate councilors calling residents bad people because they don’t want a methadone clinic in a residential area and so close to an elementary school.

Vine Street resident David McKenna said he felt people were losing the thread of the issue by focusing on the possibility of a methadone clinic.

“There is no methadone clinic on the table at this intersection,” he said. “I support the council doing whatever you all need to do to move the zoning forward in the city, to rezone Medford Square, to rezone West Medford Square, and to revitalize our tax base, as everybody wants to do.”

In the end

The City Council voted to table the hearing for one week to give Lungo-Koehn a chance to put her proposal in writing and pull together a Request for Proposals for the consultants.

Collins said even with an RFP, the council would not be free from difficult conversations or controversy, “but we can be free from hostage taking and an erosion of checks and balances." 

“We’re only planning the future of the city here,” she continued. “The community deserves a lot more from this process … We’re fighting for better, and I won’t settle for less.”

The City Council plans to meet again on Wednesday, Nov. 19.