The Southborough planning board on Monday, March 24 continued public hearings on two warrant articles to implement state ADU requirements and on several major and minor site-plan matters, and directed staff to seek additional technical reviews and safety data on a proposed quick-lube at 361 Turnpike Road.

Planning board members said they want more clarity from town staff, the building commissioner and peer reviewers before final action on several matters — and publicly flagged safety concerns about a proposed driveway/egress for a Valvoline “instant oil change” site that would use Flag Road rather than Route 9.

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs). The board heard a presentation on Articles 28 and 29 of the annual town meeting warrant, which would amend the zoning bylaw to implement the state Affordable Homes Act (Act of 2024) changes that allow ADUs up to 900 square feet by right and streamline a special-permit path for larger ADUs. Under the draft zoning, the town would (1) rename “accessory apartment” to “accessory dwelling unit,” (2) allow an ADU of up to 900 square feet by right (through an abbreviated site plan), (3) allow one ADU per single-family property, (4) prohibit short-term rentals under 31 days in ADUs, (5) remove the town’s existing cap on the number of ADUs, and (6) move ADU special-permit decisions to the planning board (currently the ZBA handles them). The presenter noted the changes are intended to conform local code to the state law and to provide clarity for applicants and staff.

Board members pressed staff about the new concept of an “abbreviated site plan” (currently not defined in the town code) and about feedback from the building commissioner, who had suggested some ADUs could be handled only with building permits. The planning board asked staff to prepare a Q&A and a plain-language handout for town meeting, and to confirm alignment with the building commissioner and ZBA. The public hearing was continued to April 7, 2025 at 5:30 p.m.

Fay School, 48 Main Street (25 Middle Road building). Niche Engineering, representing Fay School, presented plans for a roughly 9,119-square-foot two‑story classroom and multipurpose-room addition and associated site work, including utility relocations and a stormwater infiltration system. Peer-review comments from Fuss & O’Neil arrived the morning of the meeting; the project team said they would respond and bring a revised submission back. Planning board members and the peer reviewer focused on lighting/photometrics (the bylaw requires campus-level illumination calculations for “lower campus” areas), stormwater and planting details. The board continued the public hearing to April 28 at 7:00 p.m. to allow time for revised materials and follow‑up peer review.

Shared parking zoning amendment (Article 30). Staff summarized a proposed change that would allow commercial businesses in certain districts (industrial park, downtown and scientific/office districts) to use shared parking under defined conditions — e.g., a binding joint‑use agreement, a 500‑foot maximum walk from any user’s lot line to the shared space, and planning-board discretion to require a parking study or place conditions on approval. The public hearing was continued to April 7 at 5:30 p.m.

Major and minor site-plan matters. The board reviewed updates and next steps for several ongoing projects and set continuance dates so applicants can address peer-review comments: 250 Turnpike Road (contractor yard) — continued to April 28 at 7:05 p.m.; 200 Turnpike Road (contractor facility modification) — continued to April 28 at 7:15 p.m.; 2 East Main Street (multifamily, previously mixed-use) — continued to April 28 at 7:10 p.m.; 26 Meadow Lane (Reservoir Meadows, flexible/major residential development) — continued to April 28 at 7:20 p.m. Fuss & O’Neil and other peer-review comments were requested and in most cases applicants were directed to submit revised plans at least seven days before the next meeting.

Lighting, stormwater and landscaping were recurring technical themes: reviewers asked for site‑wide photometric calculations where a project is on a campus or adjoins other developed parcels, full hardscape-area lumens calculations required by the town dark‑skies-related illumination bylaw, and more detailed planting/plant substitution notes and tree-caliper specifications on landscape plans.

Valvoline (361 Turnpike Road). The board heard a focused presentation on a minor site-plan application for a Valvoline “instant oil change” proposed for the Turnpike Road/Route 9 corridor. The applicant’s engineer reported a truck-turn template and a test pit for groundwater separation under a proposed stormwater detention system and said MassDOT had reviewed the concept and preferred vehicle access from Route 9 (rather than curb cuts on Route 9 that would create conflict points). Neighbors — particularly residents of Flag Road — raised safety concerns about placing the principal driveway or exit on Flag Road (a narrow, scenic residential street that lacks sidewalks at this location). The board requested additional material: a sight-distance analysis referencing standard geometric criteria (speed/height/angle), up-to-date crash data for the Route 9/Flag Road area, and comments from public safety (police and fire) for the next meeting. No final action was taken; the board emphasized its preference that the project minimize traffic turning movements onto Flag Road and asked the applicant to return with analyses and a revised circulation option.

Administration / vegetation management. Board members raised an enforcement incident: utility contractor crews were reported cutting trees near vernal pools and on scenic roads without the required notifications. Staff said National Grid had filed a FY26 Vegetation Management Plan late and that a field crew was asked to stop work after town staff intervened. The board asked staff to draft a strongly worded letter to the utility urging strict compliance with the town’s tree/vegetation policies (scenic-road protections, notice to conservation commission, and the town policy on utility tree work). Two board members volunteered to draft or review the letter.

Votes at a glance (formal, recorded motions during the meeting)
- Continue public hearing: Articles 28 & 29 (ADUs) — continued to April 7, 2025, 5:30 p.m.; outcome: approved (Luttrell: yes; Stein: yes; Julian: yes; Demuria: yes; Rascheo: yes). (Motion and second recorded; mover/second not specified in transcript.)
- Continue public hearing: Article 30 (Shared parking) — continued to April 7, 2025, 5:30 p.m.; outcome: approved (roll call recorded).
- Continue public hearing: Fay School (48 Main Street) — continued to April 28, 2025, 7:00 p.m.; outcome: approved (roll call recorded).
- Continue public hearing: 250 Turnpike Road (contractor yard) — continued to April 28, 2025, 7:05 p.m.; outcome: approved.
- Continue public hearing: 2 East Main Street (multifamily) — continued to April 28, 2025, 7:10 p.m.; outcome: approved.
- Continue public hearing: 200 Turnpike Road (contractor facility change) — continued to April 28, 2025, 7:15 p.m.; outcome: approved. Decision deadline extended to 2025-05-20.
- Continue public hearing: 26 Meadow Lane (Reservoir Meadows) — continued to April 28, 2025, 7:20 p.m.; outcome: approved.

What’s next: Applicants were generally asked to respond to Fuss & O’Neil peer-review comments, provide revised plans (photometrics for campus projects, stormwater clarifications, plant lists and planting sizes, and sight‑distance/crash data where relevant), and to return at the April 28 meeting or earlier if a supplemental peer-review cycle completes sooner. Planning staff will draft a letter to the utility about unauthorized tree work and will coordinate a Q&A/handout for town meeting on the ADU warrant articles.

(Reporting note: the board’s meeting was held in person and on Zoom; motions and roll-call votes are summarized from the meeting transcript. The article is a factual summary of discussions recorded on March 24, 2025.)