The proposed auto dealership at Nagog Park, and a possible expansion at Hanscom Field, were each revisited at the September 18, 2023 Acton Select Board meeting.
The September 18 Nagog Park discussion had been continued from September 11, 2023, extending a pattern of scheduled appearances with requests for continuation, and another request for continuation had been made shortly before this meeting. Attorney Mark Bobrowski, appearing remotely, gave an update on progress since the last presentation, describing meetings and discussions with town committees and town officials. Select Board chair Jim Snyder-Grant said that because the request for continuance had arrived late and in recognition of residents’ expectation of a discussion, the Select Board would respond, as well as hear residents’ comments and questions.
Select Board members discussed details of issues that had been addressed since the last substantive discussion, such as green spaces, parking, and sidewalks. Select Board member David Martin addressed the repeated requests for continuances, saying that he would prefer to have further hearings delayed until the Board received a definitive plan.
Residents’ comments also expressed frustration with the series of requests for continuances that were made on short notice, noting that people took time to attend in person only to hear a request for delay from a remote participant. A resident mentioned that several businesses would close or relocate out of Acton, which will reduce the town’s tax base. Some residents urged the Select Board to simply reject the proposal; the Board did not reply directly to the call for outright rejection. The Board closed the hearing with a unanimous vote to continue at the October 16, 2023 meeting.
A proposal for an expansion at Hanscom airport that would, among other things, expand private jet hanger space was submitted as an Environmental Notification Form to the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency on January 17, 2023. At the July 11, 2023 Select Board meeting Board chair Jim Synder-Grant brought the proposal to the Board’s attention, to assess the Board’s opinion of a draft letter opposing the expansion to be sent to Governor Healey. The Board’s deliberations at the July 11 and September 18 meeting covered much the same ground.
The draft letter opposed the project primarily on the basis of increased greenhouse gas emissions, but also objected to increased runway capacity that would accommodate larger aircraft. As Select Board members Dean Charter and David Martin noted, plausible arguments could be made that the expansion might result in a net decrease of CO2, as aircraft hangered elsewhere might fly empty to Hanscom, make their passenger flight, then return empty. Similarly, auto traffic to Hanscom might replace longer drives to Logan airport. Select Board member David Martin noted that development at Hanscom had been opposed for decades before ‘climate change’ became a popular concern and, at both meetings, characterized some arguments as “greenwash”, the opportunistic use of climate as a new cover for long-standing opposition.
The potential for larger aircraft was opposed on environmental justice grounds, but Select Board members noted that communities surrounding Logan airport already bore the brunt of large aircraft noise, and sparing the relatively privileged communities surrounding Hanscom hardly seemed like justice. Residents’ comments were uniformly opposed to the expansion, both on climate grounds and the perception that wealthy interests were running roughshod over local communities. Discussion ended with general agreement to defer a decision pending an anticipated environmental impact statement.
