Opinion

Opinion: Rezoning Goes Against Wareham's Master Plan

Mar 8, 2021

To the Editor:

Please help Wareham realize its plans for the future by voting No on Article 1 at the Special Town Meeting, Saturday, April 10. The rezoning proposal is just a bad idea, and the residents of Wareham know it. While Covid-19 was attacking our loved ones and ravaging our businesses, Wareham residents were busy imagining a future after the virus. The January 2020 Master Plan and November 2020 Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan say the space should be preserved just the way it is. 

According to the Master Plan’s Future Land Use Map, almost all of the acreage in the proposed Hospitality, Recreation, and Entertainment District should be utilized as “permanently protected open space, water resources and habitat, or agriculture.” According to the plan, ”natural resources are essential to the future of Wareham and to the quality of life of its residents,” and “future conservation efforts can focus on expanding these sites and creating linked networks of open spaces throughout town.” The plan recognizes that Wareham’s existing business parks “provide high quality, high wage jobs and tax revenue to cities and towns. Wareham has a concentration of these areas at the I-195 interchange with Route 28.” Accordingly, Wareham should “encourage economic vitality in existing business areas while limiting commercial sprawl.” 

According to the Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan, “Wareham’s natural environment and natural resources are important to the Town’s identity and quality of life.”

Don’t let the Notos Group steal away Wareham’s own vision for the future. Vote NO on Article 1 at the Special Town Meeting, Saturday, April 10. 

Katherine Harrelson