On 6/26/2024 the first public hearing was held with the planning board in regards to the combining 3 lots zoned for residential use only, totaling 3.52 acres, the demolition of an almost 200 year old single family home, and the construction of a 16,200 square-foot daycare facility with a 5700 square-foot artificial surface playground, a 57 space parking lot, additional paved areas for trash and snow storage, as well as long paved drive and walkways running across parallel to North Road. 

On 9/25/2024 the Chelmsford Planning Board vocally opposed the project but voted to approve the proposed project with zero concessions concerning the bulk and size of the building, the yard size, or the lot area. The board did not want to lose the minor concessions it did receive by voting against the project and potentially losing a court case. 

Those main concessions included: The applicant paying the town a one time fee of $200 per parking space to complete a traffic study at a future date, The applicant installing solar powered flashing crosswalk lights at the Wiggin/North and Erlin/North intersections, adjusting the timing at the North/Parkhurst light, and increasing the parking lot size from 50 to 57 spaces. These concessions do not do nearly enough to subside the real issues of this project.

Normally a project like this would not be considered, but due to the intended use of the facility. It is protected by a vaguely written 70+ year old law that is typically referred to as the Dover Amendment. However, there are protections in the Dover Amendment to prevent unreasonably sized projects from being completed. The Dover Amendment allows no considerations for traffic impact. The Planning Board refused to act on the protections written in the law to combat the size of this project.

We petition the applicant to stop or significantly decrease the size of this project for the following reasons:
- Proposed building size, yard size, and lot area are unreasonable.
- The development of a large commercial facility in a RB (single residence only) zone fundamentally changes the character and historic nature of the neighborhood.
- Maximum allowable single family home footprint is 4000 square-feet per Chelmsford Zoning Laws.
- Multiple safety concerns regarding foot traffic, as well as entering and accessing the facility. These safety concerns have been noted by members of the Chelmsford Fire Department and Police Department.
- Wildlife displacement. Even with the potential to develop 3 single family homes on the lots, the wildlife displacement caused by structures and paving on most of the 3.52 acres is incomparable.
- Facility redundancy in the area. There are already multiple daycare facilities on or just off of North Rd and there are over 10 daycare facilities within 3 miles of the proposed location. 
- No daycare facility in the immediate area requires a building or lot of this size.
- Massachusetts just passed a $5 billion taxpayer funder bill to increase accessibility to housing. Using three residential lots for a daycare facility in a town already short on housing is the wrong decision.
- This project predicted 800 daily vehicle transactions in the morning and afternoon rush hours, which will undoubtedly affect every person that uses the already congested North Rd. 
- There is a real possibility for this location to be unsuccessful given the existing conditions on North Rd and the difficulties that exist to access the proposed facility. If this facility fails, the damage to the community and the neighborhood cannot be undone.