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Board Urges
New Ideas for Temple

By Scott MacKeen
Staff Writer
4/8/10
Selectmen are not anxious to take the lead in any new talks regarding the potential redevelopment of Temple Shalom, but are urging those with ideas to bring them to a public forum.

In discussing the issue at their April 1 meeting, the board was in agreement that it should not be the job of the Selectmen or any town government body to initiate new discussion on the fate of the private property.

Instead, they called on residents to get involved in exploring options that could be presented to the Temple leadership.

“Rabbi [Alfred] Benjamin indicated to our town administrator that this is how Temple Shalom would prefer to proceed,” Selectman Marion McEttrick wrote in a letter that she passed out to the other board members.

McEttrick, who lives near the Temple on Crown Street, opposed Temple Shalom’s plan for the land, which would have brought a CVS Pharmacy and Harvest Co-op organic food market to the Blue Hill Avenue site. Temple members proposed the measure to build a smaller synagogue on their property. The issue largely divided the neighborhood.

“We do not want to be pitted against each other. We want to work together on plans that contain elements we are all looking for,” McEttrick’s letter states.

Selectman Kathy Fagan said that during her own discussions with Temple members, it was made clear that the congregation wants to hear ideas that have some research behind them.

“I think they’re emotionally exhausted,” Fagan said of the synagogue members, who went through over a year of public debate before their proposal for commercial buildings was rejected by Special Town Meeting last month. “They’re interested in hearing ideas. But what they’re not interesting in is starting from scratch. They want more than just an idea thrown out there that forces them to do more work.”

Selectmen Chair John Shields, who opposed the CVS plan, said any new proposal that comes forward is “going to have to be scaled down.” He said a development with two buildings on the site – instead of the three that were originally proposed – would have a much better chance of being accepted by the town. The proposal failed to sway the two-thirds majority of Town Meeting required to change the town zoning.

“There are going to need to be some concessions [in what was proposed] if you want to get this thing done,” said Shields.

McEttrick wrote of several other options that may exist for the Temple site, including a modest mix of housing and commercial.

“The option … that would benefit the neighborhood and has been discussed with interest by the neighborhood is that of small-scale condominium development mixed with small commercial,” she wrote. “Also worthy of consideration would be other creative concepts, such as co-housing or a mix of office and housing condos. Because the least attractive part of the site for housing is Blue Hill Avenue. …It may make more sense to retain part of the existing Temple building, rather than moving the Temple site to a new location on the lot.”

Selectmen said Temple members recently held an internal meeting to discuss their future but no official business was conducted because of the Passover holiday.