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Category: Projects

Barnstable Local Comprehensive Plan Update Phase I

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The Town of Barnstable and its villages sought to create a long-term guidance document based on shared vision, local values, and community consensus. This plan will provide a policy framework for growth and development of the community’s facilities and infrastructure, economy, and natural and cultural resources over the next ten to twenty years.

The scope of work for Phase I included data collection and an inventory of the existing conditions in the community and the creation of a vision statement based on civic engagement throughout Barnstable. Organized into natural, built, and community systems, we sought to organize Barnstable’s diverse and interconnected needs and challenges according to their component parts, which is a model of the Cape Cod Commission’s Regional Policy Plan. With input from more than 1,500 residents in the community survey, community presentations and workshops in each village, and other outreach, we aimed to create a living document that will shape Barnstable’s future.

Topics in the plan include groundwater, marine waters, freshwater lakes and ponds, wetland resources, open space and recreation, wildlife habitat, land use and development, drinking water supply, wastewater management, stormwater management, transportation and circulation, utilities and public services, population, housing, cultural and historic resources, and the local economy.

Town of Carlisle Master Plan

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In April 2021, the Town of Carlisle hired Barrett Planning Group to help the Master Plan Steering Committee (MPSC) finish the Carlisle Master Plan. The planning process had launched in 2019 with another consultant, but COVID-19 put the entire project on hold. Eventually the MPSC charted a course for reviving the Master Plan and brought us on to help them reach the finish line. For a year, we worked closely with the MPSC to:

  • Update the existing conditions reports that had been prepared pre- COVID-19
  • Work closely with a subcommittee to develop and refine a GIS database with existing land uses and a buildout analysis
  • Finish a vision statement and overarching goals based on five community- identified values
  • Conduct two community forums and a community survey
  • Develop implementation strategies to achieve the plan’s goals
  • Conduct focus groups with key community partners to verify the feasibility and appropriateness of the draft strategies
  • Develop case studies of master plan implementation in similar towns
  • Draft the plan around Carlisle’s five community values, linking them to the master plan elements required by state law (G.L. c. 41, § 81D)
  • Develop an implementation framework for the Town

After publishing the draft Master Plan, the MPSC sponsored a one-month public comment period. We worked with the MPSC to address comments and revise the draft. The Carlisle Planning Board unanimously adopted the final Master Plan in May 2022.

Plymouth Housing and Zoning

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In 2023, the Town of Plymouth, NH, hired Barrett to analyze its housing needs and assist with zoning reform to encourage housing development. Funding for the project came from New Hampshire’s Housing Opportunity Grant (HOP) Program, which provides grants to communities interested in updating their land use regulations to increase opportunities for housing production.

The Barrett team was engaged to focus on three core initiatives for Plymouth:

  • Housing needs assessment to review Plymouth’s housing stock, community demographics, economic trends, and other relevant data  
  • Regulatory audit of land use regulations related to housing (zoning, site planning review, subdivision regulations)
  • Zoning amendments consistent with identified community values, housing needs, and regulatory barriers 

Barrett’s research and audit revealed a complex set of issues, particularly in relation to zoning. Land use ordinances that had been modified over time were now inconsistent and unclear. In addition, the long-standing conservative approach to development led to stricter dimensional regulations, substantially limiting opportunities for housing diversity and choice. These gradual changes rendered many properties nonconforming, making even simple building projects (a deck addition, for example) a challenge for many residents.

Led by Judi Barrett, our team proposed significant tactical changes to the Town’s land use regulations – all within the context of a participatory community planning effort co-led by the Town’s Housing Committee. Through interactive public forums, smaller focus groups, surveys, and educational materials, we gained public input and educated the community about the purpose and intent of proposed regulatory amendments.  

The town demonstrated a remarkable show of support for zoning reform. In March 2024, the Planning Board presented a substantial slate of regulatory amendments to the community, and Town Meeting voted to adopt all articles with broad support.

Among the accomplishments achieved, this package of zoning amendments:

  • Reduced the minimum lot size for single family homes, bringing many properties back into conformity with zoning and enabling greater density in future development
  • Created additional categories of housing within the zoning ordinance and reduced barriers to developing smaller multi-unit dwellings in select districts
  • Overhauled the open space residential development ordinance 
  • Provided for the ability to place multiple dwellings on a single lot
  • Reduced permitting barriers for accessory dwelling units
  • Majorly reformed off-street parking requirements

This outstanding feat was made possible by the efforts of the Town’s Housing Committee and Planning Board, Planning Department staff, community, and all involved.

Attleboro Housing Needs Assessment

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In 2023, the City of Attleboro hired Barrett Planning Group to conduct a Housing Needs Assessment. The
study was a directive of newly elected Mayor Catherine DeSimone in order to better understand and
advance the City’s housing gaps and strategies. In support of the project, Mayor DeSimone appointed a
seven-member Housing Needs Assessment Steering Committee to guide the process.
Working with the steering committee and the Attleboro Department of Planning and Development, the
Barrett team has developed a draft comprehensive Housing Needs Assessment comprised of two
essential components:

  • Phase one includes a data-driven needs analysis focused on three areas: an inventory of existing conditions, gaps between housing stock and needs, and barriers to housing.
  • Phase two expands upon this research by outlining housing goals and strategies to address the housing needs determined from phase one, as well as input from the community. These recommendations include strategies for zoning, planning, housing advocacy, and increased capacity for addressing housing needs.

One of the most significant recommendations is a proposal to establish an Affordable Housing Trust, a key municipal tool for creating and preserving housing for low- and moderate-income households. The City is moving forward with this recommendation and has begun exploring the process of establishing a trust with our assistance.

As is the hallmark of many of our projects, we employed a strong community engagement process to complement and inform our research and recommendations. This process included an initial online community survey and two in-person community meetings. Using open discussion and interactive stations during each meeting, we solicited feedback on a number of topics including housing types, housing needs and potential strategies.

At their September meeting, the Housing Needs Assessment Steering Committee approved the draft plan, which Barrett will then present to the Municipal Council later this fall. In the meantime, our team continues to assist the City with other projects, including an update to the City’s 2012 Comprehensive Plan and a newly-launched Route 1/1A Corridor Study.

Tisbury Town Plan

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When the Tisbury Planning Board embarked on the town’s first-ever town-wide master plan, they chose Barrett Planning Group to lead the planning process. As the primary hub for ferry and barge traffic entering Martha’s Vineyard, Tisbury’s Vineyard Haven terminal serves as the only year-round gateway for transporting goods and people to and from the island. Tisbury also has unique challenges in protecting coastal and inland water resources, preparing for sea level rise, and providing affordable homes for year-round and seasonal workers. To address these and other critical needs, the Town asked us to accomplish the following tasks:

Develop  a community engagement plan

Analyze existing conditions and trends, and prepare recommendations for all the core components of a master plan under Massachusetts state law (land use, economic development, housing, open space, and recreation, natural and cultural resource areas,  in ; identifying key issues and opportunities; and proposing recommendations and an implementation plan. The process was done concurrently with the development of the commercial district vision plan, prepared by Dodson & Flinker.

Our data driven analysis of the existing conditions looked at several key topics, including land use and zoning, natural resources and sustainability, housing, economic development, open space, transportation, community services and facilities, and governance – all aspects vital to Tisbury’s growth and future.

Master Plans are guided by more than just data, they’re guided by community vision. Using open houses, surveys, workshops, and stakeholder sessions, we employed a comprehensive community engagement plan to gain public insight. Working hand in hand with a dynamic Master Plan Steering Committee (MPSC), we engaged a wide perspective of ages and groups, including town staff, officials, business owners, both year-round and seasonal residents, and students. We were thrilled to have a high school student on the MPSC, who added valuable insight into the challenges and opportunities facing younger generations.  .   

At the conclusion of the nearly two-year process, we presented a 300-page plan that addressed eight key areas of municipal concern. Among the recommendations was a restructuring of the town government from Town Administrator to Town Manager, giving more authority to the town’s lead executive. This was critical for increasing the Town’s governance capacity and improving the decision-making process.  Other recommendations included regionalization of infrastructure, zoning reform, encouraging more mixed-use development, and development of a land management plan. The plan also prioritized encouraging policies that increase equitable and sustainable housing choices to meet the needs of the community.  

The Planning Board unanimously adopted the plan in April 2024, and several recommendations are already in the implementation stage. The contributions and support of municipal leaders, business owners, and residents formed the foundation of this collaborative effort, keeping it on track and leading to positive change.   In December 2024, the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA-MA) gave Tisbury’s Master Plan the 2024 Best Comprehensive Planning Award for a Small Community.

Moving Beyond the Pandemic in the Pioneer Valley

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Economic Development Assessment of Small Towns & Rural Communities

In 2022, the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) hired Barrett Planning Group to assess local economic conditions and the state of economic recovery in the 35 small towns and rural communities in Hampshire County and Hampden County. We consulted with local officials, town planners, and regional economic development and community development organizations, and gathered, analyzed, and mapped available market, economic, land use, housing, and labor force data.

From these many sources and others, we created 35 town profiles with maps and economic metrics, and developed recommendations for PVPC and the communities to move forward with economic development activities scaled to the size and character of these small communities:

  • Improving regional communications and coordination
  • Activating strategies for promoting local businesses
  • Addressing the region’s housing affordability and housing supply constraints
  • Holding regional and inter-local economic development roundtables
  • Building recreational, agricultural, and heritage tourism development
  • Zoning reform: aligning local control with twenty-first century zoning
  • Working on local economic development assessments

On December 9, 2022, American Planning Association Massachusetts awarded the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission the 2022 Planning Project Award to this project.

Learn more about other award recipients here:
https://www.apa-ma.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/2022-APA-MA-Awards-1.pptx.pdf

Salisbury Master Plan Update

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Master Plan Update for the Town of Salisbury, MA

Salisbury Town Hall, Salisbury, Massachusetts. Click to enlarge photo.
Town of Salisbury Transportation Snapshot, Salisbury Master Plan Update with Barrett Planning Group. Click to enlarge the graphic.

The Town of Salisbury hired Barrett Planning Group to partially update its 2008 Master Plan. Our team, in cooperation with Town Staff and a local Master Plan Committee, crafted new existing conditions reports and new sets of long-term goals and strategies for five elements: Land Use, Transportation, Community Health, Climate Change, and Economic Development.

We also developed an implementation plan to guide the Town over the plan’s fifteen-year lifespan. We conducted a community-wide survey and held two public community meetings to support this effort, offering in-person and remote options for both. We used mapping exercises, small and large group discussions, and open house-style stations to engage with the community about their vision for Salisbury’s future.

We produced a succinct but content-rich final document including maps and infographics for every chapter, which was adopted by the Salisbury Planning Board in October 2022.

Map of Town of Salisbury, Massachusetts, showing Sea Level Rise. Click to view larger.

Brewster Housing Production Plan

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Town of Brewster Massachusetts 2022-2027 Housing Production Plan

The Town of Brewster hired Barrett Planning Group LLC to update their 2017 Housing Production Plan (HPP) in January 2022. Over a six-month period, our team collaborated closely with Town staff and the Brewster Housing Partnership to develop a plan that outlined realistic strategies for addressing Brewster’s unique housing challenges as a coastal community with an increasing demand for seasonal and short-term rentals, sensitive environmental concerns, and a seemingly growing household income gap.

We grounded the plan’s development by centering our community engagement around:

  • The state’s required framework for HPPs under Chapter 40B
  • Progress the Town made in implementing the 2017 HPP
  • Changes in demographic and market trends — and resulting housing needs — at the local and regional level
  • Feedback from the community, including those experiencing housing instability themselves and those who work directly with households requiring assistance
  • The HPP’s relationship to other local and regional planning efforts, most notably the Town’s Local Comprehensive Plan and the Cape Cod Commission’s Regional Policy Plan

After drafting the plan’s strategies, we engaged various community partners instrumental to the HPP’s implementation — including Town staff, members from various Town bodies, realtors, developers, housing and service providers, and others — to ensure the solutions we proposed were feasible and actionable. The Town’s Planning Board and Select Board were presented with the draft HPP in June 2022 and given opportunity to provide feedback before they unanimously approved the plan in July 2022. The MA Department of Housing and Community Development approved the plan in August 2022.

Berkshire Housing Development Corp

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Berkshire Housing Development Corporation (BHDC) asked Barrett Planning Group LLC to assist with program design for a Housing Resource Center focused on homelessness in downtown Pittsfield. Well known for its many years of work as an affordable housing developer and provider of regional housing services, BHDC decided to take on a project specifically focused on homelessness by filling a gap in the existing network of services in Berkshire County.

Our work followed an agreement between BHDC and the City to develop a housing resource center alongside affordable housing, thereby co-locating services to better serve people experiencing homelessness and housing instability in Pittsfield.

We led an extensive consultation process with other Berkshire County groups working to address homelessness, including emergency shelter, mental health, substance abuse, family services, domestic violence, health care professionals, faith communities, and others, along with City staff. In addition, we met with people experiencing homelessness in order to learn from them how the Housing Resource Center could be most beneficial to them.

These conversations influenced our program design recommendations and the Request for Proposals (RFP) we prepared for BHDC to find an organization to manage the Housing Resource Center.

BHDC is using our work to obtain funding from the Massachusetts Housing & Shelter Alliance (MHSA) and other agencies.

From the client: “Berkshire Housing needed a consultant to undertake a non-traditional project that would engage community partners and people with lived experience as well as research national best practices. Barrett Planning Group enthusiastically stepped up to the challenge.

With their strong technical skills, adaptability and committed team, we not only had a lot of fun working together, but we also got just what we needed! The technical report was well researched and well written, and will serve to effectively guide our community in future decisions.”

Town of Bridgewater Comprehensive Master Plan

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Town of Bridgewater MA Comprehensive Master Plan

Bridgewater, Massachusetts

Barrett Planning Group began working with the Town of Bridgewater in 2018 to develop Phase I of a master plan. Our initial scope of work included developing a plan vision, overarching goals, and existing conditions reports for the master plan elements described in G.L. c. 41, § 81D, with our partners at McMahon Associates crafting the transportation element. Home to several state institutions including Bridgewater State University, an MBTA Commuter Rail station, and the Old Colony Correctional Center, the Town has unique opportunities and challenges that shape conversations about land use and comprehensive planning that we considered from the outset of our work.

We began the process working with an appointed Comprehensive Master Plan Committee (CMPC) and conducting focus groups with staff, Town officials, business owners, and other stakeholders. We launched the public face of the project with a community visioning session for citizens to share their aspirations for Bridgewater’s future. This event was closely followed by a workshop for residents to discuss the continued relevance of the Town’s 2002 master plan goals. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we shifted to virtual engagement opportunities, including an online survey of draft goals and strategies developed with the CMPC to ensure our understanding of the community’s priorities was on target.

At this time, the Town approached us about continuing the project beyond Phase I to develop an implementation program. After addressing CMPC and staff comments on draft existing conditions reports, we finalized our work with the CMPC and began developing implementation program with Town staff. We held a public implementation workshop to allow the community to provide additional input on draft recommendations.

Final recommendations and an accompanying implementation program were paired with our Phase I work to create a complete master plan. In the early months of 2022, we worked with the Planning Board to refine the final plan, which the Board unanimously approved in May 2022.

Let’s Connect

Barrett Planning Group LLC is based in Hingham, MA, and specializes in planning, zoning and community development throughout Massachusetts and Greater New England.

Our team is ready to help you with your community planning needs.

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Hingham, Massachusetts 02043
(781) 934-0073
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