HAMILTON — A grassroots citizens committee in Hamilton is looking to join a growing list of Massachusetts cities and towns filing court motions questioning the legality of the state’s MBTA Communities Law 3A zoning regulations. The town is seeking to intervene in a pending lawsuit in Essex Superior Court that, among other claims, argues the regulations are unconstitutional and would put undue strain on their essential services and infrastructure. The suit, filed in 2022 by Rockport resident John Kolackovsky and nine others, has seen about 20 different cities and towns file motions to intervene to ensure their concerns are adequately represented throughout legal proceedings. Many of those towns — including Wenham, Marblehead and Wayland — filed their motions in just the last month.
As a commuter rail community — under the state zoning law — Hamilton is required to zone for 731 new multifamily housing units, which the 22-person citizens committee, Nonpartisan Committee of Hamilton Citizens Supporting Responsible Development, fears could put a strain on traffic management, water supply, waste disposal, school density, and other areas of town. “It’s really a nonpartisan initiative made up of Democrats and Republicans alike, which is what you’re going to find with all of these other plaintiff committees involved in this litigation,” committee representative Ellen A. Wright said. ‘Everyone came together and just pushed forward on this — it’s something that voters don’t want shoved down their throats, there’s no question about it. ”The constitutionality of the zoning law is a concern for citizens groups who argue that it interferes with the state’s Home Rule amendment that mandates municipalities have the power to decide their own zoning regulations. The state has “supreme power” in zoning matters, according to Article 60 of the Massachusetts Constitution.
“Home Rule has been a (principle) of municipal government for decades, giving cities and towns the right to zone how they choose,” Wright said. “Peabody is not Middleton and Danvers is not Hamilton; everyone has a little bit of a different demographic. “So it is not a one-size-fits-all situation, and that’s essentially what I think this law is trying to turn it into. and I think that’s gonna be a recipe for disaster.
Other towns, including Milton, Marshfield, and Holden, have voted at their respective Town Meetings to not comply with the MBTA Communities Law . This prompted Attorney General Andrea Campbell to file a suit against the town of Milton, which asks the Suffolk County Superior Court to order the town to come into compliance. “We believe that the requirements of (the 3A law) could have far-reaching and detrimental effects on our community,” Wright said. “Our goal is to ensure that the voices of Hamilton residents are heard and that any decisions made regarding zoning changes take into account the unique challenges and needs of our town.”