It was my understanding that the formerly pending asphalt plant site at 145 Temple Street Nashua was in “mixed use” zoning, which could/would have been their argument had they not withdrawn their litigation against the City. I haven’t been paying attention to this matter since the last city election came and went, and they apparently conceded in that city hall stubborn contest. However, I was unaware of any subsequent efforts to review the zoning of the whole city since then until some Agenda 21/2030 crap reared its ugly head back in February 2024.
A fair and comprehensive review of the city’s zoning was something I wanted to explore if I had beaten Alderman Dowd, because with the current zoning, there’s always the possibility of a future Asphalt 2.0, 3.0, etc. situation, not that I favored the nuisances of having an asphalt plant anywhere nearby. This matter was not on my mind again until all this housing bill crap came up this season. All Dems except Altschiller want it in the senate (SB 84 roll call, for example), and I assume it’s the same situation in the House, possibly without an Altschiller of their own. That means 25 Nashua Reps probably want it and get to stay cloaked in a voice vote or Consent Calendar landscape as Jane Aitken mentioned in her recent article.
I know an asphalt plant and a place to call home are NOT the same thing, but my question for those 25 reps, the mayor, and Rosenwald has to do with this Concord attempt to upshift the local control of zoning/planning to state government. Nashua’s ruling class couldn’t care less about usurping the local control in places like Rindge, all in the name of housing, of course, but what about those pesky unintended consequences of such upshifting? What if the perfect(to them) bill(s) ultimately steamroll the will of city hall and shove that asphalt plant approval down its throat? And what if the asphalt plant promoters want it on Rockland, Wellington or another sacred North End neighborhood street? As the saying goes, “asking for a friend.” To all the useful idiots that support the mayor, Rosenwald and the 25 Nashua swamp rats in the House, I say “be careful what you wish for.”
