Committee briefed on 'The Downs' buildout, traffic plans and fiscal trade-offs

Committee members received a multipart update on the project known in discussion as 'The Downs' and related traffic and fiscal plans. Staff described the master-plan phase, forthcoming residential lots (mostly single-family), and the planned Market Street/Market Basket connectors that will allow a through trip but be intentionally traffic-calmed.

Staff told the committee the developer has invested heavily in traffic improvements and is preparing another traffic-movement permit; the firm has so far invested tens of millions. "They estimate they're going to invest about 250 million in infrastructure. That infrastructure is going to be turned over to us," a staff member said, describing the arrangement under which the developer builds and later conveys roads and utilities to the town.

Committee members also discussed how the developer may recover some of that upfront investment if the project meets its targets — described in meeting discussion as a community-assistance or TIF-like mechanism that could return up to tens of millions of dollars if conditions are met. Members emphasized that fiscal analyses done for the project calculate net benefits over time when the full array of uses and tax revenues are considered.

Separately, the committee heard updates on associated site proposals — an indoor sports/turf facility near Costco and a revived cottages-at-Sawyer-Road infill proposal — and discussed constraints such as site size, infrastructure needs and the timeline to connect new streets to the Downs network.