Bellingham Planning Board Approves Two Zone-Freeze Subdivisions, Updated Housing Plan

BELLINGHAM — January 9, 2025 — Bellingham Planning Board unanimously approves two zone-freeze subdivisions and an updated Housing Production Plan at its January 9 meeting. Town Planner Rob Lusiér guided the board through definitive subdivision approvals for 306 Maple Street and Harford Avenue — both filed solely to freeze existing zoning — after lengthy discussion over whether four waiver requests from Allen Engineering's Mike Dryden needed a formal vote; the board declined to act on the waivers and approved both decisions as written. Consultant Gino Carlucci presented the updated Housing Production Plan, reporting that Bellingham already holds 759 state-recognized affordable units against the 673-unit threshold required to maintain the 10 percent benchmark based on the 2020 census denominator of 6,732 total housing units — meaning zero additional affordable units are required through 2030. The board amended one line in the plan, replacing the word "discriminatory" with "counterproductive" in a passage criticizing bedroom restrictions on multifamily housing, before forwarding the plan to the Select Board. The board also opened a new public hearing for a proposed 6,480-square-foot two-story office building at 123 Mendon Street, owned by DNC Ponte Enterprise LLC, and continued it to February 27 pending stormwater peer review.