Bridgewater Planning Board Shifts Downtown Approval Authority Back to Elected Board

BRIDGEWATER — April 15, 2026 — Bridgewater Planning Board opens hearing on downtown zoning overhaul, delays four duplex permits over HOA dispute. The board voted unanimously to continue a public hearing on Ordinance D FY 26-014, an eight-page set of amendments to the Central Business District Redevelopment zone that would return approval authority over downtown projects to the elected Planning Board, cap building lengths at 100 feet, reduce maximum stories from four to 3.5, and require 80 percent commercial ground-floor occupancy in mixed-use buildings. Chair Patrick Driscoll and Town Planner Shane O'Brien said the changes address inconsistencies in an ordinance that appeared to be "cut and pasted from another town." Separately, deliberation on four duplex special permits on Oak Street and Crapo Street was continued to May 6 after Driscoll pressed for a single master condominium association across all four properties — a condition Building Commissioner Steven Solari doubted was legally enforceable for Form A lots on a public road. The board unanimously approved a 7,500-square-foot storage building at 1985 Old Plymouth Street with a condition requiring documentation of the all-gravel site's open space and impervious surface percentages before a certificate of occupancy is issued. A Route 18 commercial proposal at 292 Bedford Street — anchored by O'Reilly Auto Parts, 11,765 square feet — was continued to May 6 after the board and applicant disagreed over a 20-foot landscaping buffer along the street and unresolved questions about connecting to municipal sewer without a water tie-in.