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MINUTES OF WORK GROUP MEETING 4/ ao Title of Work Group: Managing Growth: Development and Open Space Meeting Date, Time, Location: Thursday, April 6, 2000 from 7 to 9 p.m., Town Office Building Room 111 Present: Tom Harden (Chairman), John Andrews, Larry Belvin, Ione Garing, Mike Hanauer, Karl Kastorf, Marianne Lazarus (acting scribe).Josh Murray, Donna Rossi, Lee Sinai. Steering Committee Liason, Fred Merrill. Staff, Marilyn Nordby. Absent: Suzanne Caton, Gary Fallick, Karen Longeteig, Jerry Moloney, Markus Pinney, Tiffany Papadonis, Ed Vail (attending another 2020 meeting). Chairman Tom Harden called the meeting to order just after 7 p.m. Minutes of the previous meeting (March 30) as distributed by email were approved. Minutes of the March 16 meeting have pending editorial questions which Marianne Lazarus will resolve with Tiffany Papadonis. Larry Belvin reported about his attendance at the March 30 CPG meeting (which has been reported in an April 4, 2000 email, "Feedback on Environmental Scans from March 30, 2000 CPG Meeting" to All Work Groups from the CPG and the Steeting Committee). Other than the CPG's suggestion that our group focus more on questions about Hanscom (especially considering one CPG member's commitment to that), Larry pointed out that the CPG advised us to think not in terms of stopping growth but of controlling it. A discussion ensued on this topic with, very briefly, the following points: • Population growth may be OK (depending on how it's housed) • It may be OK to have growth of some things, just not houses • We may want to limit growth in some places, but not all • The growth may be controlled with zoning; Example: Santa Cruz, where accessory apartments are allowed so long as number of parked cars is reduced • Another example: Seniors, who don't drive, need to live where cars are not needed • In some areas it's recognized that cars are unaffordable to low income people, and housing is built accordingly • The effects of more houses are broad: not only more cars and traffic, but school demands, services, etc. • The town could buy a large house, divide it to house more people(seniors) and specify these people not have cars (which are a burden to the town) • There are alternatives to private cars: the $2000 a year usually spent on a car could cover the cost of taxis • Consider critical mass: increased density could increase demand for alternative forms of transportation • Traffic controlling measures could include reducing major traffic routes • We maybe should think of creating an evironment specifically more suitable for public transportation