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Town Meeting Recap

January Town Meeting began with a moment of silence for recently passed Town Meeting members Mable Nevins and Hope Paulsen. Town Meeting member Shari Ellis is stepping down after this session and was acknowledged for her 30 years of service on Town Meeting. There was recognition and a standing ovation for longtime Town Clerk Amy Warfield, as she is set to retire at the end of April and this being her last Town Meeting. On the second night Ernie Covino also received a standing ovation after it was announced this will be his last Town Meeting representing the Planning Board, after serving on that board for 36 years. 

The first and big presentation of the night involved a 90 minute presentation and discussion to establish a Mixed Use Innovation District (MIX). Four different zoning articles were presented by Economic Development Director Melisa Tintocalis to create the MIX District which unifies the patchwork of different zoning types along Burlington Mall Road and Middlesex Turnpike area into one unified district. The new zoning will allow for infill development of underutilized land and existing infrastructure. 

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The development of the MIX District has been 3 years in the making.  The town began to study the area with MassDevelopment and the zoning framework was developed through community workshops and professional planning designers. The rezoning has been a primary initiative of Tintocalis’ for the future of work, retail, housing, transportation, the environment, & community needs.

Mixed-use developments will have retail space on the ground floor and residential units above. The effort is to reactivate the existing space and create housing and business within close proximity with ease of travel and walkability and making use of green space for a more lively village-like environment in the area. The Planning Board will retain its power to review and adapt proposals for developments in the area. Town Meeting decisively passed all four warrant articles.

The full Town Meeting can be found here, or jump to a specific piece below. All of the presented articles passed with the exception of Article 17 which was a proposal to rescind the prohibition of marijuana sales.  

January 27, 2025

January 29, 2025