Pepperell Planning Board Approves Barbershop, Debates State Housing Mandate Response

PEPPERELL — January 20, 2026 — Pepperell Planning Board approves Main Street barbershop and weighs response to sweeping state housing legislation. The board voted unanimously January 20 to approve minor site plan PMIN-26-1, allowing Joseph Lizio of JMG LLC to convert a former real estate office at 129 Main Street into a three-chair barbershop with conditions including designation of an accessible parking space and a prohibition on storage uses. Town Planner Jason Hoch then briefed the board on Massachusetts Senate Bill 2836, which would require communities to allow multifamily housing by right at five units per acre in sewered areas by a January 1, 2028, deadline as currently written. Hoch said proactive adoption of Chapter 40R or 40Y overlay districts could generate one-time state payments of up to $600,000 plus $3,000 per building permit issued, while inaction would leave Pepperell "bound to what the state allows" with no design standards and no revenue offset. Member Joan Lotta linked the discussion to the failed 40R town meeting vote, arguing that misinformation on social media — particularly about PFAS water contamination and school overcrowding — had driven that defeat and that the board would need a proactive public communications strategy before bringing any new proposal forward.