by John Osborn ·
Friday, June 5, 2026
The Harvard Select Board met Tuesday night with a KP Law attorney to sharpen a letter opposing a provision of Gov. Maura Healey’s Mass Wins bill that would give MassDevelopment sole authority to propose changes to Devens zoning bylaws and replace the three-town “super town meeting” approval process that has governed the community since 1993. The board’s position is unambiguous: It wants no change.
The letter was drafted by Victor Normand, chair of the Harvard Devens Jurisdiction Committee, at the board’s request. Michael D’Ortenzio, substituting for the town’s regular counsel Jeff Blake, attended Tuesday’s meeting to advise the board on the legislature’s authority to make such changes and to help sharpen the town’s arguments against them.
D’Ortenzio told the board that while the Legislature has authority to amend any Massachusetts law, including laws passed by ballot question, the proposal raises serious concerns about democratic process, removing meaningful participation by the three towns in decisions that directly affect them.
The board did not vote on final wording Tuesday but wants to get the letter to state Sen. James Eldridge and state Rep. Dan Sena quickly, while there is still time to influence the outcome. Eldridge, who also represents Ayer, has urged the town to move quickly. The Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies held a public hearing on the bill in May and must report by July 18.
Once the board is satisfied with the draft, the letter will go to Eldridge and Sena, with copies to the select boards of Ayer and Shirley, state Sen. John Cronin, who represents Shirley, and MassDevelopment.
Under a 1993 law governing the redevelopment of Fort Devens, any change to the Devens Reuse Plan or zoning bylaws requires approval at a Super Town Meeting, a joint convening of registered voters from Harvard, Ayer, and Shirley, with each town meeting and voting separately. Section 10A of the Mass Wins bill would replace that process starting Jan. 1, 2027.
Under the proposal, MassDevelopment would initiate and propose all amendments, hold at least two public hearings, and then convene a single meeting in or near Devens open to any registered voter in any of the three towns. A quorum of just 50 voters drawn from all three towns combined, with no minimum from any individual town, would be required, less than half the current standard. No revisions to a proposed amendment would be permitted at the meeting.
Board members raised concerns on each point. SusanMary Redinger noted that under the proposed quorum, a measure could pass without a single Harvard voter in the room. Board members also questioned whether a meeting at which no changes can be made to the proposal before them constitutes a town meeting in any meaningful sense.
Normand argued the bill violates the foundation of the 1993 agreement. “There was an agreement between the commonwealth and the three towns that we will only change the reuse plan if there is absolute consensus among the three towns,” he said. “How can any community trust that the commonwealth won’t go back on commitments it makes to facilitate economic development?”
Eve Wittenberg pressed for language in the letter making clear the board wants no change at all to the current process. “What we want is for there to be no change,” she said.
D’Ortenzio said he would incorporate the board’s comments and send a revised draft for review.
In a telephone interview, Eldridge said he is looking to the select boards of Harvard and Ayer for guidance before taking a position on the Devens provision. To date, he said, he has heard from neither. The Press did not reach Cronin in time for publication.