Image | Courtesy of Town of Shrewsbury
The new MBTA zoning proposal in Shrewsbury includes parcels west of the original proposed overlay.
August 22, 2024
Former Shrewsbury Christmas Tree Shops location to become trampoline park, as Town shifts planned MBTA housing zone westward
Image | Courtesy of Google Maps
The Olde Shrewsbury Village in Shrewsbury
A former Christmas Tree Shops location in the Olde Shrewsbury Village on Route 9 is set to become a trampoline and adventure park, as the Town of Shrewsbury has developed an alternative plan for multifamily zoning to comply with the Massachusetts MBTA Communities Law without using the plaza.
Olde Shrewsbury Village, located at 1000 Boston Turnpike, was sold in March to Zi Qian Zhang, the owner of JZ Real Estate in Fall River, who owns 20 Fun City Adventure Park locations along the East Coast.
A sign has been placed at the former Christmas Tree Shops location, advertising the site will soon become home to a new Fun City Adventure Park, joining existing Fun City sites in Massachusetts including Taunton, Springfield, and Seekonk. In addition to trampolines, other Fun City sites include climbing walls, slides, and arcade machines.
News of Zhang’s proposal for an adventure park at the site comes as Shrewsbury has been tasked with reexamining its proposed zone to comply with the Massachusetts MBTA Communities Law, which requires municipalities served by the MBTA Commuter Rail to create at least one district of reasonable size where multifamily zoning is permitted by right.
The Town was originally planning on voting on a proposal at its Town Meeting in May to have the Old Shrewsbury Village parcel make up a large component of the proposed zoning overlay.
However, the state determined that the proposal was not in an eligible location, as it ruled the overlay was not comprised of an existing village-style or downtown development with pedestrian access to amenities, a requirement of the MBTA zoning act, Christopher McGoldrick, Shrewsbury director of planning and economic development, said to Select Board members during the body’s June 11 meeting.
In place of the former proposal, McGoldrick presented a new proposal to see the overlay district moved westward away from the Olde Shrewsbury Village. The new zone includes a handful of parcels bordering Route 9 and Route 20, including the existing 384-unit Shrewsbury Commons apartment, as well as 33 Green St., the proposed site of a 300-unit 40B housing project and a 18.3-acre vacant parcel located at 409 South St. McGoldrick said has drawn interest from a number of developers.
The new plan is in response to resident feedback, limits the impact on potential or existing commercial developments, and allows the town to meet state density requirements, McGoldrick said. Unlike the previous proposal, this overlay district would not require developments to be mixed-use sites, which include retail or commercial uses.
Shrewsbury has until the end of December to approve new MBTA zoning. Failure to comply with the law before the deadline could see the Town become ineligible to receive $4.8 million in state grants, according to a presentation given during the Planning Board meeting in March.
Kevin Mizikar, town manager for Shrewsbury, said he’s hopeful a special town meeting could be held in November to vote on the new proposal.
Eric Casey is a staff writer at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the manufacturing and real estate industries.
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