Zoning Board Rejects Controversial Wilmington Detox Center

WILMINGTON, MA -- After months of delays, the Wilmington Zoning Board of Appeals voted to reject a proposal to build a drug treatment facility on Middlesex Avenue. While a motion approving the application passed on a 3-2 vote Wednesday, the proposal required a super majority of at least four yes votes to move forward. If the developer wants to move forward with the controversial project, it would need to file a lawsuit against the town and the zoning board in Middlesex Superior Court.

ZBA Chair Daniel J. Veerman and members Jacquelyn Santini and Anthony J. Barletta Jr. voted in favor of the proposal. Raymond Lepore and Thomas W. Siracusa voted against the proposal. Earlier in the meeting, Siracusa signaled he was opposed to the proposal because of aesthetics concerns. He said at two stories, the building would stick out like a "sore thumb" in an area of one-story buildings.

"I don’t think it meets the aesthetics of that particular area," Siracusa said. "It has nothing to do with the detox center or safety concerns."

The project was first proposed in Sept. 2017 and prompted Wilmington Town Meeting to pass zoning rules limiting where such facilities could be located in Dec. 2017. But the Middlesex Avenue project, which had already received planning board approval, was grandfathered in under the old zoning rules and allowed to move forward.

State Rep. Dave Robertson (D-Tewksbury) was one of several speakers who spoke at Wednesday's public hearing, which had been continued from last month. He noted problems Tewksbury has had stemming from similar detox programs on the grounds of Tewksbury State Hospital. "Turn down this proposal and have them move it elsewhere," Robertson said.

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Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).