Swampscott Boards Unanimously Adopt and Endorse Master Plan 2035

SWAMPSCOTT — June 17, 2026 — Swampscott adopts its Master Plan 2035 and approves an entertainment license for a new downtown performing arts venue. The Planning Board voted unanimously to adopt the 232-page plan under MGL Chapter 41 Section 81D, and the Select Board voted unanimously to endorse it, capping roughly 18 months of work by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council and a 27-member advisory committee whose community survey drew 385 responses and more than 1,800 individual comments. Carlos Montanez, principal planner at MAPC, told both boards the plan is not a zoning regulation but "gives every board, every department, and every committee at Swampscott a shared framework for making decisions," with a vision statement rated 4.2 out of 5 by respondents. Near-term priorities include Kings Beach water quality remediation tied to an EPA consent decree, rail trail construction targeted for 2026 and 2027, and missing middle zoning reform. The board also voted unanimously to grant a full entertainment license to the Swampscott Center for Performing Arts, which is leasing the former Hawthorne Restaurant through June 2028 and plans ticketed events with nationally recognized performers by fall 2026. A lengthy discussion on the Hawthorne long-term RFP produced a working list of nine framework topics — including sale versus lease, open space requirements, parking, and residential use — with staff targeting an RFP launch in fall 2026 and responses by January 2027 to align with the end of the performing arts lease.