Auburn Select Board rejects 40B LIP deal for 96-unit Wallace Avenue complex

AUBURN -- July 21, 2025, Auburn Select Board deadlocks 2-2, killing a Local Initiative Program agreement for a proposed 96-unit chapter 40B apartment development at 88 Wallace Avenue. Chair Anne M. Cavanaugh presided as dozens of Wallace Avenue residents urged the board not to endorse the project, citing a documented fatality, three major car accidents near the proposed entrance, a road width of only 20 feet at the project entry, and the project's growth from 72 to 96 units. The board's hired 40B consultant, Joe Peznola of Hancock Associates, confirmed that Auburn's subsidized housing inventory sits at 5.24 percent, well below the 10 percent threshold that triggers strong state presumption in favor of development. Greg Wood of the Auburn Water District placed the preliminary cost of replacing the Wallace Avenue water main at $2.5 million and confirmed the district can supply adequate water to the project. With the LIP agreement defeated, the developer may now apply directly to Mass Housing for a project eligibility letter and proceed to the Zoning Board of Appeals without any pre-negotiated town commitments, including a $1 million developer-funded water main replacement that had been included in the draft agreement.