Newbury Planning Board Delays Decision on 34 Central Street Single-Access Dispute

NEWBURY — June 17, 2026 — Newbury Planning Board tables decision on single-access modification for a 44-unit development, citing unresolved questions about the applicant's best efforts to secure a secondary emergency access road. The board was asked to modify its November 2025 approval of Byfield Heights at 34 Central Street, proposed by Massachusetts Housing Opportunities Corporation, LLC, after the Conservation Commission approved the broader conservation order but excluded a secondary exit lane onto Central Court that would have required a wetland crossing. Town Counsel Jay Tallerman framed the board's task as a three-part inquiry: whether the applicant made genuine best efforts on the secondary access, whether the single-access plan is acceptable as proposed, and whether limited peer review of any new conditions is needed. Member Peter Pecos said he was not satisfied all engineering alternatives had been explored: "My concern is, could this be engineered differently?" The board placed the item on its next agenda, approximately two weeks out, while staff assess options for additional technical consultation. In separate business, the board voted 4-0 to release $19,150 in performance guarantee funds for the Cypress Hollow subdivision at 100 High Road, with $19,412 remaining in escrow, and received an introductory presentation from the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission on Chapter 40Y starter home zoning, a state optional program offering towns incentive payments for allowing by-right construction of homes capped at 1,850 square feet at a minimum density of four units per acre.