The week ahead: City boards will continue housing development discussions into 2026

Update (Jan. 5): This story has been updated to reflect the fact that the School Committee will, in fact, be holding its first meeting of 2026 on Wednesday, Jan. 7.

Numerous city bodies will hold their first meetings of 2026 this week. In some of those meetings, housing development and residential zoning projects will dominate the agenda.

The Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday will hear updates on an application to build a large residential housing development at 455 Totten Pond Road under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40B. The proposed development has been in front of the board since March. 

Meanwhile, the Conservation Commission will hear from another developer, Maple Multi-Family Land East Coast, which has requested a Chapter 40B special housing permit from the ZBA for a property at 245–265 Winter St. The commission first heard updates on the conservation aspects of the project in July and is scheduled to hear more about it on Thursday.

The Board of Survey and Planning will take on yet another topic that will impact residential zoning at its meeting on Wednesday, when it plans to discuss proposals for three mixed-use districts submitted to the board and the City Council in early December. The board will vote on whether to request an evaluation of the districts from the state’s Executive Office of Housing and Liveable Communities to determine what requirements developers in these mixed-use districts would have to meet to obtain special permits. A 2020 revision of state law made it so planning and permitting boards require fewer votes to approve special permits for developments that meet certain requirements for affordability, transit accessibility, multi-use zoning and/or proportion of the land used for housing.

The City Council is not scheduled to resume regular meetings in the upcoming week.

Zoning Board of Appeals

The ZBA is a five-person board charged with reviewing new and existing buildings that might violate the city’s zoning code. 

The board has the power to grant project-specific variances to the code, overrule judgments made by the building inspector and grant specific types of special permits, including the comprehensive residential permits outlined by the state’s Chapter 40B statute.

The board will be dedicating part of its meeting to discussion of the 455 Totten Pond Road residential development, proposed by The Davis Companies. 

The project has encountered some friction at previous ZBA meetings, with board members saying it doesn’t provide sufficient affordability and taking issue with a plan to provide some of the affordable units through housing vouchers for formerly homeless veterans who have transitioned into independent living.

The ZBA will also discuss a case at 110 Clematis Ave. involving the conversion of a gym into basketball practice facilities.

The board will meet at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 6, at the Arthur Clark Government Center.

Parks-Recreation Board

The Parks-Recration Board is an eight-person board that oversees the city’s public recreational spaces and programming. 

This week it plans to set departmental policies for 2026, including for pavilion use and pickleball, as well as rates for the department’s summer program. It will also hear presentations from youth sports leagues in the city. It will also entertain an event request from Flight Performance for a 5K run.

It will meet on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at 5:30 p.m. at the Waltham Recreation Department at 510 Moody St.

Board of Survey and Planning

The Board of Survey and Planning regulates public and private ways and makes decisions on the status and boundaries of lots in the city.

This week, aside from its discussions about special permit requirements for multi-use zoning overlay districts in the west of Waltham, it will hear updates on a special use permit for a gas station at 962 Main St. The permit, which it has been discussing since January 2025, would allow the station to continue using four driveways that are larger than permitted by the zoning code.

The board will meet at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in the auditorium of the Clark Government Center.

School Committee

The Waltham School Committee, an elected six-member committee chaired by Mayor Jeannette A. McCarthy, makes policy and oversight decisions for the Waltham Public Schools.

This week, the committee will hold its first meeting of 2026, where it will welcome its two newest members and elect a clerk and vice-chair for the new year. It also plans to adopt a policy manual for 2026.

The committee will also accept donations to the district’s schools, and may revisit ongoing policy discussions about emotional support dogs and Waltham High School’s career and technical education program.

The committee will meet at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in the James J. Cannon Lecture Hall of the school building at 617 Lexington St.

Conservation Commission

The Conservation Commission is a volunteer board charged with overseeing environmental planning in Waltham. The commission reviews certain types of construction on or around wetlands to ensure they comply with the Wetlands Protection Act and the Department of Environmental Protection stormwater standards.

This week, among other business, the commission will hold a continued public hearing on the potential large residential development at 245–265 Winter St. proposed through Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40B. The development is still negotiating details of a special permit with the Zoning Board of Appeals.

The commission will hold a meeting via Zoom at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 8. An agenda and link for the meeting will be provided on the commission’s page on the city website at least 48 hours in advance.

Waltham Cultural Council

The Waltham Cultural Council is a part of the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s local council program. It allocates funds for arts, sciences and humanities projects and events focusing on Waltham’s cultural diversity and local history.

The WCC, whose members completed this fiscal year’s grant review process in December, will hold its first regular monthly meeting of 2026 at 7 p.m. on Thursday via Zoom.